This comes too near the praifing of myself; (7)
Therefore, no more of it. Hear other things..
Lorenzo, I commit into your hands

The husbandry and manage of my house,
Until my lord's return. For mine own part,
I have tow'rd heaven breath'd a fecret vow,
To live in prayer and contemplation,
Only attended by Neriffa here,

Until her husband and my lord's return.
There is a monaftery two miles off,

And there we will abide. I do defire you,
Not to deny this impofition:

The which my love and fome neceflity
Now lays upon you.

Lor. Madam, with all my heart;

I fhall obey you in all fair commands.

Por. My people do already know my mind, And will acknowledge you and Jeffica

In place of lord Bafanio and myself.

So fare you well, 'till we fhall meet again.

Lor. Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you! Jef. I wish your ladyfhip all heart's content.

Por. I thank you for your wifh, and am well pleased To wish it back on you: fare ye well, feffica.

Now, Balthazar,

[Exeunt Jef. and Lor,

As I have ever found thee honeft, true,

So let me find thee ftill take this fame letter,
And ufe thou all th' endeavour of a man,
(8) In fpeed to Padua ; fee thou render this

(7) In former Editions:

This comes too near the praising of myself;
Therefore no more of it; here other things.

Inte

Lorenzo, I commit, &c.] Portia finding the reflections she had made came too near Self praife, begins to chide herself for it: fays, She'll fay no more of that fort; but call a new fubject. The Regulation have made in the Text was likewile preferib'd by Dr. Thirlby.

THEOBALD

(8) In fpeed to Mantua;] Thus all the old Copies; and thus a!! the Modern Editors implicitly after them. But 'tis evident to any diligent Reader, that we must reftore, as I have done, In speed to Padua For it was there, and not at Mantua, Bellarto liv'd. So afterwards; A Melenger with Letters from the Du&tor, Noru

:

H 5

Into my cousin's hand, Doctor Bellario;

And look what notes and garments he doth give thee,
Bring them, I pray thee, with imagin'd speed
Unto the Traject, to the common ferry

Which trades to Venice: wafte no time in words,
But get thee gone; I fhall be there before thee.
Balth. Madam, I go with all convenient speed.

[Exit.

Por. Come on, Neriffa; I have work in hand, That you yet know not of: we'll see our husbands, Before they think of us.

Ner. Shall they fee us?

Por. They fhall, Neriffa; but in fuch a habit,
That they fhall think we are accomplished
With what we lack. I'll hold thee any wager,
When we are both apparell'd like young men,
TII prove the prettier fellow of the two,
And wear my dagger with the braver grace;
And fpeak between the change of man and boy,
With a reed voice; and turn two mincing fteps
Into a manly ftride; and fpeak of frays,
Like a fine bragging youth; and tell quaint lies,
How honourable ladies fought my love,
Which I denying they fell fick and dy'd,
I could not do with all. - then I'll repent,
And with, for all that, that I had not kill'd them.
And twenty of these puny lies I'll tell;

That men fhall fwear, I've difcontinued school
Above a twelvemonth. I have in my mind
A thousand raw tricks of thefe bragging jacks,
Which I will practise.

Ner. Shall we turn to men?

Por. Fie, what a queftion's that,

If thou wert near a lewd Interpreter !
But come, I'll tell thee all my whole device
When I am in my coach, which stays for us
At the park-gate; and therefore haste away,
For we must measure twenty miles to-way.

[Exeunt:

come from Padua- And again, Come you from Padua, from Bellario ?- And again, It comes from Padua, from Bellario Befides, Padua, not Mantua, is the Place of Education for the Civil Law in Italy.

THEOBALD. SCENE

SCENE VI.

Enter Launcelot and Jeffica.

Laun. Yes, truly for look you, the fins of the father are to be laid upon the children; therefore, I promife you, I fear you. I was always plain with you; and fo now I fpeak my agitation of the matter: therefore be of good cheer; for truly, I think, you are damn'd there is but one hope in it that can do you any good, and that is but a kind of bastard hope neither.

Jef. And what hope is that, I pray thee?

Laun. Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are not the Jew's daughter,

Jef. That were a kind of baftard hope, indeed. So the fins of my mother fhould be vifited upon me.

Laun. Truly, then, I fear, you are dann'd both by father, and mother; thus when you fhun Scylla your father, you fall into Charybdis, your mother ; welb you are gone both ways.

Jef. I fhall be faved by my husband; he hath made me a chriftian.

Laun. Truly, the more to blame he; we were chriftians enough before, e'en as many as could well live one by another this making of chriftians will raise the price of hogs if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not shortly have a rather on the coals for mony. Enter Lorenzo.

Jef. I'll tell my husband, Launcelot, what you fay Here he comes.

if

Lor. I fhall grow jealous of you fhortly, Launcelot, you thus get my wife into corners.

Jef. Nay you need not fear us, Lorenzo; Launcelot and I are out; he tells me flatly, there is no mercy for me in heav'n, because I am a Jew's daughter; and he fays, you are no good member of the commonwealth for, in converting the Jews to chriftians, you raife the price of pork.

Lor. I fhall anfwer that better to the commonwealth,

wealth, than you can the getting up of the negro's belly the Moor is with child by you, Launcelot.

:

Laun. It is much that the Moor fhould be more than reafon but if the be less than an honeft woman, she is indeed more than I took her for,

Lor. How every fool can play upon the word! I think, the best grace of wit will thortly turn into filence, and difcourfe grow commendable in none but Go in, firrah, bid them prepare for dinner.

parrots.

Laun. That is done, Sir; they have all stomachs. Lor. Good lord, what a wit-fnapper are you! then bid them prepare dinner.

Laun. That is done too, Sir; only, cover is the word.
Lor. Will you cover then, Sir?

Laun. Not fo, Sir, neither; I know my duty.

Lor. Yet more quarrelling with occafion! wilt thou fhew the whole wealth of thy wit in an instant? I pray thee understand a plain man in his plain meaning: go to thy fellows, bid them cover the table, ferve in the meat, and we will come in to dinner.

:

Laun. For the table, Sir, it fhall be ferv'd in for the meat, Sir, it fhall be covered for your coming in to dinner, Sir, why, let it be as humours and conceits fhall govern. [Exit Laup. Lor. O dear discretion, how his words are fuited ! * The fool hath planted in his memory

An army of good words; and I do know

A

many fools that ftand in better place,
Garnih'd like him, that for a trickfy word
Defy the matter. How far'ft thou, Jessica ?
And now, good fweet, fay thy opinion,
How dost thou like the lord Bassanio's wife ?
Jef. Paft all expreffing: it is very meet,
The lord Baffanie live an upright life.
For, having fuch a Bleffing in his lady,
He finds the joys of heaven here on earth
And if on earth he do not merit it,

In reafon he should never come to heav'n.

* How his words are fuited!] I believe the meaning is: What a feries or fuit of words he has independent of meaning; how one word draws on another without relation to the matter.

Why,

Why, if two Gods fhould play fome heav'nly match,
And on the wager lay two earthly women,
And Portia one, there must be something else
Pawn'd with the other; for the poor rude world
Hath not her fellow.

Lor. Even fuch a husband

Haft thou of me, as the is for a wife.

Jef. Nay, but afk my opinion too of that.
Lor. I will anon. First, let us go to dinner.

Jef. Nay, let me praife you, while I have a ftomach.

Lor. No, pray thee, let it ferve for table-talk ; Then, howfoe'er thou fpeak'ft, 'mong other things, I fhall digeft it.

Jef. Well, I'll fet you forth.

ACT IV.

[Exeune.

SCENE I.

The Senate-boufe in Venice.

Enter the Duke, the Senators; Anthonio, Baffanio, and Gratiano, at the Bar.

DUKE.

WHAT, is Anthonio here?

Antb. Ready, fo please your Grace.

Duke. I'm forry for thee; thou art come to answer A ftony adverfary, an inhuman wretch

Uncapable of pity, void and empty

From dram of mercy.

any

Anth. I have heard,

Your grace hath ta'en great pains to qualify

His rig'rous course; but fince he stands obdurate,
And that no lawful means can carry me

Out of his envy's reach, I do oppose

My patience to his fury; and am arm'd
To fuffer with a quietnefs of fpirit,
The very tyranny and rage of his.

Duke. Go one, and call the few into the Court.
Sal. He's ready at the door: he comes, my lord.

Enter