LOVE's LABOUR's LOST.

A

COMEDY.

Bb 4

Perfons

Boyet,

Mercade,

three Lords, attending upon the King in

his retirement.

} Lords, attending upon the Princess of France.

Don Adriano de Armado, a fantastical Spaniard.
Nathaniel, a Curate.

Dull, a Conftable.

Holofernes, a Schoolmaster.

Coftard, a Clown.

Moth, Page to Don Adriano de Armado.
A Forefter.

Officers, and others, attendants upon the King and Princess.

SCENE, the King of Navarre's Palace, and the Country near it.

This enumeration of the persons was made by Mr. Rowe.

JOHNSON.

LOVE's

ACT I. SCENE I.

Navarre. The Palace.

Enter the King, Biron, Longaville, and Dumain.

King. Let fame, that all hunt after in their lives, Live registred upon our brazen tombs,

And then grace us in the difgrace of death;
When, fpight of cormorant devouring time,
The endeavour of this prefent breath may buy
That honour, which shall bate his scythe's keen edge,
And make us heirs of all eternity.

Therefore, brave conquerors!-for fo you are,
That war against your own affections,

And the huge army of the world's defires,-
Our late edict shall strongly stand in force:
Navarre fhall be the wonder of the world;
Our court fhall be a little Academe,
Still and contemplative in living art.
You three, Biron, Dumain, and Longaville,
Have fworn for three years' term to live with me,
My fellow scholars, and to keep those ftatutes,
That are recorded in this schedule here:
Your oaths are paft, and now fubfcribe your names;
That his own hand may strike his honour down,
That violates the smallest branch herein :

'I have not hitherto discovered any novel on which this comedy appears to have been founded; and yet the story of it has moft of the features of an ancient romance. STEEVENS.

If

If you are arm'd to do, as fworn to do,
Subfcribe to your deep oath, and keep it too.

Long. I am refolv'd: 'tis but a three years faft; The mind fhail banquet, though the body pine: Fat paunches have lean pates; and dainty bits Make rich the ribs, but bankerout the wits.

Dum. My loving lord, Dumain is mortify'd;
The groffer manner of thefe world's delights
He throws upon the grofs world's bafer flaves:
To love, to wealth, to pomp, I pine and die;
With all these living in philofophy".

Biron. I can but fay their proteftation over,
So much, dear liege, I have already sworn,
That is, To live and ftudy here three years.
But there are other ftrict obfervances:
As, not to fee a woman in that term ;
Which, I hope well, is not enrolled there.
And, one day in a week to touch no food;
And but one meal on every day befide;
The which, I hope, is not enrolled there.
And then, to fleep but three hours in the night,
And not be seen to wink of all the day;
(When I was wont to think no harm all night,
And make a dark night too of half the day)
Which, I hope well, is not enrolled there.
O, these are barren tafks, too hard to keep;
Not to fee ladies, ftudy, fast, nor fleep3.

King. Your oath is pass'd to pass away from these.
Biron. Let me fay, no, my liege, an if you please;
I only fwore, to study with your grace,
And stay here in your court for three years' fpace.
Long. You fwore to that, Biron, and to the reft.

2 With all thefe, living in philofophy.] The style of the rhyming fcenes in this play is often entangled and obfcure. I know not certainly to what all thefe is to be referred; I fuppofe he

ineans, that he finds love, pomp, and wealth in philofophy NSON.

3 nor fleep.] The folio-not fleep. STEEVENS.

Biron. By yea and nay, fir, then I swore in jeft.What is the end of study? let me know.

King. Why, that to know, which elfe we fhould not know.

Biron. Things hid and barr'd (you mean) from common fenfe?

King. Ay, that is ftudy's god-like recompence.
Biron. Come on then, I will fwear to study fo,
To know the thing I am forbid to know :
As thus, To ftudy where I well may dine,
When I to feast exprefly am forbid 4;
Or, study where to meet fome mistress fine,
When miftreffes from common fenfe are hid:
Or, having fworn too hard-a-keeping oath,
Study to break it, and not break my troth.
If ftudy's gain be thus, and this be fo,
Study knows that, which yet it doth not know:
Swear me to this, and I will ne'er fay, no.

}

King. These be the stops that hinder ftudy quite, And train our intellects to vain delight.

Biron. Why, all delights are vain; but that most
vain,

Which, with pain purchas'd, doth inherit pain:
As, painfully to pore upon a book,

To feek the light of truth; while truth the while Doth falfly blind the eye-fight of his look:

4 When I to feast exprefly am forbid;] The copies all have : When I to fast exprefly am forbid;

But if Biron ftudied where to get a good dinner, at a time when he was forbid to faft, how was this studying to know what he was forbid to know? Common fenfe, and the whole tenour of the context require us to read, feaft, or to make a change in the last word of the verfe :

5

When I to faft exprefly am fore-bid;

i.e. when I am enjoined before-hand to faft. THEOBALD.
while truth the while
-]

Doth falfly blind

Falfly is here, and in many other places, the fame as dishonestly or treacherously. The whole fenfe of this gingling declamation is only this, that a man by too clofe ftudy may read himself blind, which might have been told with lefs obfcurity in fewer words.

JOHNSON.
Light,