Rom. Gentle Mercutio, put thy rapier up. Rom. Draw, Benvolio ; "They fight. Beat down their weapons.-Gentlemen, for shame The prince expressly hath forbid this bandying Mer. I am hurt ;- A plague o' both the houses!--I am sped.— What, art thou hurt? Ben. enough. Where is my page!-Go, villain, fetch a surgeon. [Exit Page. Rom. Courage, man; the hurt cannot be much. Mer. No, 'tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church door; but 'tis enough, 'twill serve; ask for me to-morrow, and you shall find me a grave man.1 I am peppered, I warrant, for this world.-A plague o' both your houses!-Zounds, a dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat, to scratch a man to death! a braggart, a rogue, a villain, that fights by the book of arithmetic!-Why the devil came you between us? I was hurt under your arm. Rom. I thought all for the best. Mer. Help me into some house, Benvolio, Or I shall faint.-A plague o' both your houses! I have it, and soundly too.-Your houses! [Exeunt MERCUTIO and BENVOLIO. 1 After this, the quarto, 1597, continues Mercutio's speech as followsA pox o'both your houses! I shall be fairly mounted upon four men's shoulders for your house of the Montagues and the Capulets: and then some peasantly rogue, some sexton, some base slave, shall write my epitaph, that Tybalt came and broke the prince's laws, and Mercutio was slain for the first and second cause. Where's the surgeon? Boy. He's come, sir. "Mer. Now he'll keep a mumbling in my guts on the other side. Come, Benvolio, lend me thy hand: a pox o'both your houses!" な Rom. This gentleman, the prince's near ally, Re-enter Benvolio. Ben. O Romeo, Romeo, brave Mercutio's dead ; That gallant spirit hath aspired1 the clouds, Which too untimely here did scorn the earth. Rom. This day's black fate on more days doth depend;2 This but begins the woe, others must end. Re-enter TYBALT. Ben. Here comes the furious Tybalt back again. Rom. Alive! in triumph! and Mercutio slain! Away to heaven, respective lenity, 3 4 And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now!- Tyb. Thou, wretched boy, that didst consort him here, Shalt with him hence. Rom. This shall determine that. Ben. [They fight; TYBALT falls. Romeo, away, be gone! 1 We never use the verb aspire without some particle, as to and after There are numerous ancient examples of a similar use of it with that in the text. 2 This day's unhappy destiny hangs over the days yet to come. There will yet be more mischief. The citizens are up, and Tybalt slain. Stand not amazed;-the prince will doom thee death If thou art taken :-hence!-be gone!-away! Rom. O! I am fortune's fool! 1 Ben. Why dost thou stay? [Exit ROMEO. Enter Citizens, &c. 1 Cit. Which way ran he that killed Mercutio? Tybalt, that murderer, which way ran he? Ben. There lies that Tybalt. 1 Cit. Up, sir, go with me; I charge thee in the prince's name, obey. Enter Prince, attended; MONTAGUE, CAPULET, their wives, and others. Prin. Where are the vile beginners of this fray? The unlucky manage of this fatal brawl. That slew thy kinsman, brave Mercutio. La. Cap. Tybalt, my cousin!-O my brother's child! Unhappy sight! ah me, the blood is spilled 2 Prin. Benvolio, who began this bloody fray? slay. Romeo, that spoke him fair, bade him bethink 3 How nice the quarrel was, and urged withal Your high displeasure.-All this-uttered With gentle breath, calm look, knees humbly bowedCould not take truce with the unruly spleen Of Tybalt, deaf to peace, but that he tilts 1 In the first quarto, "O! I am fortune's slave." 2 As thou art just and upright. 3 Nice here means silly, trifling, or wanton. ཀུང»=rr With piercing steel at bold Mercutio's breast; It back to Tybalt, whose dexterity Retorts it. Romeo, he cries aloud, Hold, friends! friends, part! and, swifter than his tongue, His agile arm beats down their fatal points, And 'twixt them rushes; underneath whose arm La. Cap. He is a kinsman to the Montague. Prin. Romeo slew him, he slew Mercutio; His fault concludes but, what the law should end, Prin. And, for that offence, Immediately we do exile him hence: I have an interest in your hates' proceeding, My blood for your rude brawls doth lie a-bleeding, I will be deaf to pleading and excuses; Nor tears, nor prayers, shall purchase out abuses, Bear hence this body, and attend our will; [Exeunt. SCENE II. A Room in Capulet's House. Enter JULIET. 3 Jul. Gallop apace, you fiery-footed steeds, 4 Hood my unmanned blood bating in my cheeks,5 With thy black mantle; till strange love, grown bold, Think true love acted, simple modesty. Come, night!-Come, Romeo! come, thou day in night! For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night 1 The sentiment here enforced is different from that found in the first edition, 1597. There the prince concludes his speech with these words: 'Pity shall dwell, and govern with us still; Mercy to all but murderers,-pardoning none that kill.” 2 Here ends this speech in the original quarto. The rest of the scene has likewise received considerable alterations and additions. 3 i. e. that the eyes of prying persons, who run away as soon as observed, may wink, i. e. see imperfectly. Much ingenious criticism has been bestowed in endeavoring to explain this passage. The runaway has been supposed to refer to the sun, to night, to Juliet, to Romeo, and to Fame. There is most probably some typographical error in the lines. 4 Civil is grave, solemn. 5 These are terms of falconry. An unmanned hawk is one that is not brought to endure company. Bating is fluttering or beating the wings as striving to fly away. |