Enter mistress Anne Page with wine; mistress Ford and mistress Page following.

Page. Nay, daughter, carry the wine in; we'll drink within. [Exit Anne Page, Slen. O heaven! this is miftrefs Anne Page.

Page. How now, mistress Ford?

Fal. Mistress Ford, by my troth, you are very well met; by your leave, good mistress.

[Kiffing her. Page. Wife, bid these gentlemen welcome:-Come, we have a hot venifon pafty to dinner; come, gentlemen, I hope we shall drink down all unkindness.

[Exeunt all but Shal. Slender, and Evans. Slen. I had rather than forty fhillings, I had my book of fongs and fonnets here:

Enter Simple.

How now, Simple! where have you been? I must wait on myself, must I? You have not the book of riddles about you, have you?

Sim. Book of riddles? why, did you not lend it to Alice Shortcake upon Allhallowmas laft, a fortnight afore Michaelmas ?

Shal. Come, coz; come, coz; we ftay for you. A word with you, coz: marry, this, coz; There is, as 'twere, a tender, a kind of tender, made afar off by fir Hugh here; -Do you understand me?

Slen. Ay, fir, you fhall find me reasonable; if it be fo, I fhall do that that is reason.

Shal. Nay, but understand me.

Slen. So I do, fir.

Eva. Give ear to his motions, mafter Slender: I will description the matter to you, if you be capacity of it.

Michaelmas ?]-Martlemas, the feaft of St. Martin.

Slen.

Slen. Nay, I will do, as my coufin Shallow fays: I pray you, pardon me; he's a juftice of peace in his country, fimple though I ftand here.

Eva. But that is not the question; the question is concerning your marriage.

Shal. Ay, there's the point, fir.

Eva. Marry, is it; the very point of it; to mistress Anne Page.

Slen. Why, if it be fo, I will marry her upon any reafonable demands.

с

Eva. But can you affection the 'oman? let us command to know that of your mouth, or of your lips; for divers philofophers hold, that the lips is parcel of the mouth ;Therefore, precisely, can you carry your good-will to the maid?

Shal. Coufin Abraham Slender, can you love her?

Slen. I hope fir,-I will do, as it shall become one that would do reason.

Eva. Nay, Got's lords and his ladies, you must speak poffitable, if you can carry her your defires towards her. Shal. That you must: Will you, upon good dowry, marry her?

Slen. I will do a greater thing than that, upon your requeft, confin, in any reason.

Shal. Nay, conceive me, conceive me, fweet coz ; what I do, is to pleasure you, coz: Can you love the maid?

Slen. I will marry her, fir, at your requeft; but if there be no great love in the beginning, yet heaven may decrease it upon better acquaintance, when we are marry'd, and have more occafion to know one another: I hope, upon familiarity will grow more contempt: but if you say, marry her, I will marry her, that I am freely diffolved and diffolutely.

of the mind.

d

content.

Eva. It is a fery difcretion answer; fave, the faul' is in the 'ort diffolutely: the 'ort is, according to our meaning, refolutely ;-his meaning is good.

Shal. Ay, I think my cousin meant well.

Slen. Ay, or elfe I would I might be hang'd, la.

Re-enter Anne Page.

Shal. Here comes fair miftrefs Anne :-Would I were young, for your fake, mistress Anne.

Anne. The dinner is on the table; my father defires your worship's company.

Shal. I will wait on him, fair mistress Anne.

Eva. Od's pleffed will! I will not be abfence at the grace. [Ex. Shal. and Evans. Anne. Will't please your worship to come in, fir? Slen. No, I thank you, forfooth, heartily; I am very well. Anne. The dinner attends you, fir.

Slen. I am not a-hungry, I thank you forfooth:-Go, firrah, for all you are my man, go, wait upon my coufin Shallow: [Exit Simple.] A juftice of fometime peace may be beholden to his friend for a man :-I keep but three men and a boy yet, till my mother be dead: But what though? yet I live like a poor gentleman born.

Anne. I may not go in without your worship: they will not fit, till you come.

Slen. I'faith, I'll eat nothing: I thank you as much as though I did.

Anne. I pray you, fir, walk in.

Slen. I had rather walk here, I thank you: I bruis'd my fhin the other day with playing at fword and dagger with a mafter of fence, three veneys for a dish of ftew'd prunes;

e three veneys]-three distinct set-to's, or bouts.

a fweet touch, a quick venew of wit!"

LOVE'S LABOUR LOST. A&t V, S. 1. Arm.

and

and, by my troth, I cannot abide the smell of hot meat fince. Why do your dogs bark fo? be there bears i' the

town?

Anne. I think, there are, fir; I heard them talk'd of.

Slen. I love the fport well; but I fhall as foon quarrel at it, as any man in England:-You are afraid, if you fee the bear loose, are you not?

Anne. Ay, indeed, fir.

f

Slen. That's meat and drink to me now: I have feen 'Sackerfon loose, twenty times; and have taken him by the chain: but, I warrant you, the women have fo cry'd and fhriek'd at it, that it pafs'd:-but women, indeed, cannot abide 'em; they are very ill-favour'd rough things. Re-enter Page.

Ꮒ

Page. Come, gentle mafter Slender, come; we stay for

you.

Slen. I'll eat nothing, I thank you, fir.

Page. By cock and pye, you fhall not choofe, fir:

come, come.

Slen. Nay, pray you, lead the way.

Page. Come on, fir.

Slen. Mistress Anne, yourself fhall go first.

Anne. Not I, fir; pray you, keep on.

Slen. Truly I will not go firft; truly-la: I will not do

you that wrong.

↑ "That's meat and drink to me]-the joy of my life.

"It is meat and drink to me to fee a clown

AS YOU LIKE IT, A& V, S. 1. Clo.

* Sackerfon]-the name of a bear, once famous in Paris-garden...

ir pajs'd:]—all belief, or expreffion.

"all the reft fo laughed that it pass'd."

Pan.

TROILUS AND CRESSIDA, A&t I, S. 2. "Why this paffes." Act IV, S. 2. of this Play. Page. By cock and pye,]-a corruption of the facred name, and the table, or

rule of offices in the Romish fervice book.

By cock and pye, fir, you shall not away to-night."
HENRY IV, Part II, A&t V, S. 1. Shal.

VOL. I.

N

Anne.

Anne. I pray you, fir."

Slen. I'll rather be unmannerly, than troublefome: you do yourself wrong, indeed-la.

[Exeunt

Eva. Go your ways, and ask of Doctor Caius house, which is the way: and there dwells one mistress Quickly, which is in the manner of his nurse, or his dry nurse, or his cook, or his laundry, his washer, and his wringer.

Simp. Well, fir.

Eva. Nay, it is petter yet:-give her this letter; for it is a 'oman that altogether's acquaintance with mistress Anne Page; and the letter is, to defire and require her to folicit your master's defires to mistress Anne Page: I pray you, gone; I will make an end of my dinner; there's pippins and cheese to come. [Exeunt feverally.

.be

Enter Falstaff, Hoft, Bardolph, Nym, Pistol, and Robin. Fal. Mine hoft of the Garter,

k

Hoft. What fays my bully-rook? speak fchollarly, and wifely.

Fal. Truly, mine hoft, I muft turn away fome of my followers.

Hoft. Discard, bully Hercules; cafhier: let them wag; trot, trot.

Fal. I fit at ten pounds a week.

Hoft. Thou 'rt an emperor, Cæfar, Keifar, and Pheezar.

* bully-rook?]-bully and thief united; rook-a common man at

chefs.