Enter OUT-LAWS, with DUKE and THURIO.

Out. A prize, a prize, a prize!

Val. Forbear, I say! it is my lord the duke.. Your grace is welcome to a man disgraced, Banished Valentine.

Duke. Sir Valentine!

Thu. Yonder is Silvia; and Silvia's mine.

W

Val. Thurio give back, or else embrace thy death; Come not within the measure of my wrath;.

Do not name Silvia thine; if once again,

Milan shall not behold thee. Here she stands;
Take but possession of her with a touch;-!
I dare thee but to breathe upon my love. Ü
Thu. Sir Valentine, 1 care not for her, I;

I hold him but a fool, that will endanger
His body for a girl that loves him not:
I claim her not, and therefore she is thine.

Duke. The more degenerate and base art thon,
To make such means + for her as thou hast done
And leave her on such slight conditions.→→
Now, by the honour of my ancestry,

I do applaud thy spirit, Valentine,

3

اعتدالان

And think thee worthy of an empress' love.
Know then, I here forget all former griefs,
Cancel all grudge, repeal thee home again N
Plead a new state in thy unrival'd merit,
To which I thus subscribe-Sir Valentine,
Thou art a gentleman, and well derived;
Take thou thy Silvia, for thou hast deserved her.
Val. I thank your grace; the gift hath made me

happy.

I now beseech you, for your daughter's sake,
To grant one boon that I shall ask of you.

་་་

Duke. I grant it, for thine own, whate'er it be.
Val. These banish'd men, that I have kept witha!
Are men endued with worthy qualities;

Forgive them what they have committed here,
And let them be recall'd from their exile::

They are reformed, civil, full of good,!

And fit for great employment, worthy lord.

Duke. Thou hast prevail'd: I pardon them, and

thee;

Dispose of them, as thou know'st their deserts,
Come, let us go; we will include all jars,
With triumphs, mirth, and rare soleninity.

• Length of my sword.
↑ Conclude.

+ Interest,

§ Marks, revels.

Val. And, as we walk along, I dare he bold With our discourse to make your grace to smile: What think you of this page, my lord?

Duke. I think the boy hath grace in him; he blushes.

Val. I warrant you, my lord; more grace than boy.

Duke. What mean you by that saying?

Val. Please you, I'll tell yon as we pass along, That you will wonder, what hath fortuned,Come, Proteus; 'tis your penance, but to hear The story of your loves discovered:

That done, our day of marriage shall be yours;
One feast, one house, one mutual happiness.

[Exeunt.

Two GENTLEMEN OF VERONA.]-It is observable (I know not for what cause) that the style of this comedy is less figurative, and more natural and unaffected, than the greater part of this author's, though supposed to be one of the first he wrote.

POPE.

Mrs. Lenox observes, and I think not improbably, that the story of Proteus and Julia might be taken from a similar one in the Diana of George of Montemayor." This pastoral romance," says she, "was translated from the Spanish in Shakspeare's time." I have seen no earlier translation than that of Bartholomew Yong, who dates his dedication in November 1598; and Meres, in his Wit's Treasury, printed the same year, expressly mentions the Tro Gentlemen of Verona. Indeed, Montemayor was translated two or three years before, by one Thomas Wilson; but this work, I am persuaded, was never published entirely; perhaps some parts of it were, or the tale might have been translated by others. However, Mr. Steevens says, very truly, that this kind of love-adventure is frequent in the old novelists. FARMER.

In this play there is a strange mixture of knowledge and ignorance, of care and negligence. The versification is often excellent, the allusions are learned and just; but the author conveys his heroes by sea from one inland town to another in the same country; he places the emperor at Milan, and sends

his young men to attend him, but never mentions him more; he makes Proteus, after an interview with Silvia, say he has only seen her picture: and, if we may credit the old copies, he has, by mistaking places, left his scenery inextricable. The reason of all this confusion seems to be, that he took his story from a novel which he sometimes followed, and sometimes forsook, sometimes remembered, and sometimes forgot.

That this play is rightly attributed to Shakspeare, I have little doubt. If it be taken from him, to whom shall it be given? This question may be asked of all the disputed plays, except Titus Andronicus; and it will be found more credible, that Shakspeare might sometimes sink below his highest flights, than that any other should rise up to his JOHNSON.

lowest.

Some of the incidents in this play may be supposed to have been taken from The Arcadia, Book 1. chap. vi. where Pyrocles consents to head the Helots. (The Arcadia was entered on the books. of the Stationers' Company, Aug. 23d, 1588.) The love-adventure of Julia resembles that of Viola in Twelfth Night, and is indeed common to many of the ancient novels. STERYENS.

THE

MERRY WIVES

OF

WINDSOR.

PERSONS REPRESENTED.

Sir JOHN FALSTAFF.

PENTON.

SHALLOW, a Country Justice.
SLENDER, Cousin to Shallow,

Mr. FORD, Two Gentlemen dwelling at Windsor.
Mr. PAGE, S

WILLIAM PAGE, a Boy, Son to Mr. Page.
Sir HUGH EVANS, a Welsh Parson,

Dr. CAIUS, a French Physician.

HOST of the Garter Inn.

BARDOLPH,

PISTOL,

NYM,

ROSIN, Page to Falstaff.

SIMPLE, Servant to Slender.

RUGBY, Servant to Dr. Caius.

Mrs. FORD.

Mrs. PAGE.

Mrs. ANNE PAGE, her Daughter, in love with

Fenton.

Mrs. QUICKLY, Servant to Dr. Caius.

Servants to Page, Ford, &c.

Scene, Windsor; and the parts adjacent.