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Slen. Ay, you spake in Latin then too; but 'tis no matter: I'il ne'er be drunk whilst I live again, but in honest, civil, godly company, for this trick: if I be drunk, I'll be drunk with those that have the fear of God, and not with drunken knaves.

Era. So Got 'udge me, that is a virtuous

mind.

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

Eva. Nay, Got's lords and his ladies, you must speak possitable, if you can carry her your desires towards her.

Shul. That you must: Will you, upon good dowry, marry her?

Slen. I will do a greater thing than that,

Fal. You hear all these matters denied, gen-upon your request, cousin, in any reason. tlemen; you hear it.

Enter Mistress ANNE PAGE, with wine; Mistress FORD and Mistress PAGE foilowing.

Page. Nay, daughter, carry the wine in; we'll drink within. [Exit ANNE PAGE. Sten. O heaven! this is mistress Anne Page. Page. How now, mistress Ford? Fal. Mistress Ford, by my troth, you are very well met: by your leave, good mistress. [kissing her. Page.Wife, bid these gentlemen welcome: Come, we have a hot venison pasty to dinner; come, gentlemen, I hope we shall drink down all unkindness.

[Exeunt all but SHAL. SLEND. and EVANS. Slen. I had rather than forty shillings I had my book of songs and sonnets 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 end it to Alice Shortcake upon Allhallowmas last, a fortnight afore Michaelmas?

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

Slen. I will marry her, sir, at your request; but if there be no great love in the beginning, yet heaven may decrease it upon better acquaintance, when we are married, and have more occasion 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 dissolved, and dissolutely.

Eva. It is a fery discretion answer; save, the faul' is in the 'ort dissolutely: the 'ort is, according to our meaning, resolutely;—his meaning is good.

la.

Shal. Ay, I think my cousin meant well.
Slen. Ay, or else I would I might be hanged,

Re-enter ANNE PAGE.

Shal. Here comes fair mistress Anne :

Would I were young, for your sake, mistress
Anne!

Anne. The dinner is on the table; my fa ther desires your worships' company.

Shal. I will wait on him, fair mistress Anne. Eva. Od's plessed will! I will not be absence at the grace.

Shal. Come, coz; come, coz ;. we stay for you. A word with you, coz: marry, this, coz; There is, as 'twere, a tender, a kind of tender, made afar off by sir Hugh here;-Do you un-in,

derstand me?

[Exeunt SHALLOW and Sir H. EVANS. Anne. Will't please your worship to come sir?

Slen. No, I thank you, forsooth, heartily;

Sten. Ay, sir, you shall find me reasonable; I am very well.
if it be so, I shall do that that is reason.
Shal. Nay, but understand me.

Slen. So I do, sir.

Anne. The dinner attends you, sir. Slen. I am not a-hungry, I thank you, for sooth: Go, sirrah, for all you are my man, go,

Era. Give ear to his motions, master Slen-wait upon my cousin Shallow; [Exit SIMPLE. der: I will description the matter to you, if you be capacity of it.

Slen. Nay, I will do as my cousin Shallow says: I pray you, pardon me; he's a justice of peace in his country, simple though I stand

bere.

Era. But this is not the question; the question is concerning your marriage. Shal. Ay, there's the point, sir.

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

Slen. Why, if it be so, I will marry her, apon any reasonable demands.

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

maid?

Shal. Cousin Abraham Slender, can you Jove her?

• An intended blunder.

A justice of peace sometime 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 sit, till you come.

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

Anne. I pray you, sir, walk in.

Sten. I had rather walk here, I thank you! I bruised my shin the other day with playing at sword and dagger with a master of fence, three veneyst for a dish of stewed prunes; and, by my troth, I cannot abide the smell of hot meat since. Why do your dogs bark so? be there bears i' the town?

Anne. I think there are, sir; I heard them talked of.

Slen. I love the sport well; but I shall as soon quarrel at it as any man in England;

Three set-to's, bouts, or hits.

You are afraid if you see the bear loose, are you not?

Anne. Ay, indeed, sir.

Fal. Bardolph, follow him; a tapster is a good trade: An old cloak makes a new jerkin a withered serving-man, a fresh tapster: Go adieu.

Bard. It is a life that I have desired; I wil [Exit BARD Pist. O base Gongarian wight! wilt tho the spigot wield?

Slen. That's meat and drink to me, now: I have seen Sackerson loose, twenty times; and have taken him by the chain: but, I war-thrive. rant you, the women have so cried and shriek'd at it, that it pass'dt:-but women, indeed, cannot abide 'em; they are very ill-favoured rough things. Re-enter PAGE.

Page. Come, gentle master Slender, come; we stay for you.

Slen. I'll eat nothing; I thank you,: sir. Page. By cock and pye, you shall not choose, sir: come, come.

Slen. Nay, pray you, lead the way.
Page. Come on, sir.

Slen. Mistress Anne, yourself shall go first.
Anne. Not I, sir; pray you, keep on.
Sten. Truly, I will not go first; truly, la: I
will not do you that wrong.

Anne. I pray you, sir.

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

SCENE II. The same.

[Exeunt.

Enter Sir HUGH EVANS and SIMPLE. 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, sir.

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 desire and require her to solicit your master's desires to mistress Anne Page: I pray you, be gone; I will make an end of my dinner; there's pippins and cheese to come. [Exeunt. SCENE III. A Room in the Garter Inn.

Enter FALSTAFF, HOST, BARDOLPH, NYM, PISTOL, and ROBIN.

Fal. Mine host of the Garter,Host. What says my bully-rook? Speak scholarly and wisely.

Fal. Truly, mine host, I must turn away some of my followers.

Host. Discard, bully Hercules; cashier: let them wag; trot, trot.

Fal. I sit at ten pounds a-week.

Host. Thou'rt an emperor, Cæsar, Keiser, and Pheezar. I will entertain Bardolph; he shall draw, he shall tap: said I well, bully

Hector?

Fal. Do so, good mine host. Host. I have spoke; let him follow: Let me see thee, froth and lime: I am at a word; follow. [Exit Host.

Nym. He was gotten in drink: Is not th humour conceited? His mind is not heroid and there's the humour of it.

Fal. I am glad I am so acquit of this tinder box; his thefts were too open: his filching wa like an unskilful singer, he kept not time.

Nym. The good humour is, to steal at a mi nute's rest.

Pist. Convey, the wise it call: Steal! foh a fico for the phrase!

Ful. Well, sirs, I am almost out at heels. Pist. Why then let kibes ensue.. Fal. There is no 'remedy; I must coney catch; I must shift.

Pist. Young ravens must have food. Fal. Which of you know Ford of this town Pist. I ken the wight; he is of substanc good,

Fal. My honest lads, I will tell you what am about.

Pist. Two yards, and more.

the waist two yards about: but I am now Fal. No quips now, Pistol; indeed I am i about no waste; I am about thrift. Briefly, do mean to make love to Ford's wife; I sp.

entertainment in her; she discourses,she carves she gives the leer of invitation: I can constra the action of her familiar style; and the hard est voice of her behaviour, to be English' rightly, is, I am sir John Falstoff's.

Pist. He hath studied her well, and tran lated her well; out of honesty into English. Nym. The anchor is deep: will that humou pass?

rule of her husband's purse; she hath legion Ful. Now, the report goes, she has all th of angels.

Pist. As many devils entertain; and, To her boy, say I.

Nym. The humour rises; it is good: humou me the angels.

Fal. I have writ me here a letter to her and here another to Page's wife; who eve now gave me good eyes too, examin'd my parts with most judicious eyliads: sometime the beam of her view gilded my foot, some times my portly belly.

Pist. Then did the sun on dunghill shine. Nym. I thank thee for that humour.

Fal. O, she did so course o'er my exterior with such a greedy intention, that the appetit of her eye did seem to scorch me up like burning glass! Here's another letter to her she bears the purse too; she is a region in Guiana, all gold and bounty. I will be cheater to them both, and they shall be exchequers t me; they shall be my East and West Indies

The name of a bear exhibited at Paris-Garden in Southwark. +Surpassed all expression. For Hungarian. Fig. Gold coin. Escheatour, an officer in the Exchequer

and I will trade to them both. Go, bear thou this letter to mistress Page; and thou this to mistress Ford: we will thrive, lads, we will thrive.

Pist. Shall I sir Pandarus of Troy become, And by my side wear steel? then, Lucifer take all!

Nym. I will run no base humour; here, take the humour letter; I will keep the 'haviour of reputation.

Fal. Hold, sirrah, [to RoB.] bear you these
letters tightly*;

Sail like my pinnace to these golden shores.-
Rogues, hence avaunt! vanish like hail-stones,
go;
[pack!
Trudge, plod away, o' the hoof; seek shelter,
Falstaff will learn the humour of this age,
French thrift, you rogues; myself, and skirted.
page. [Exeunt FALSTAFF and ROBIN.
Pist. Let vultures gripe thy guts! for gourd
and fulham t holds,

And high and low beguile the rich and poor:
Tester I'll have in pouch, when thou shalt lack,
Base Phrygian Turk!

Nym. I have operations in my head, which be humours of revenge in

Pist. Wilt thou revenge?

Nym. By welkin, and her star!diamond.
Pist With wit or steel?

Nym. With both the humours, I

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I will discuss the humour of this love to Page.
Pist. And I to Ford shall eke unfold,

How Falstaff, varlet vile,

His dove will prove, his gold will hold, And his soft couch defile... Nym. My humour shall not cool: I will in. cense ý Page to deal with poison; I will possess him with yellowness I, for the revolt of mien is dangerous: that is my true humour. A Pist. Thou art the Mars of malcontents: I second thee; troop on., od [Exeunt, SCENE IV. A Room in Dr. Cius's House. Enter Mrs.QUICKLY, SIMPLE, and RUGBY. Quick. What, John Rugby!-I pray thee, go to the casement, and see if you can see my master, master Doctor Caius, coming: if he do, i'faith, and find any body in the house, here will be an old abusing of God's patience, and the king's English.

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Cuius, Ouy; mette le au mon pocket; De-
peche, quickly-Vere is dat knave Rugby?
Quick What, John Rugby! John!
Rug. Here, sir. pub

Cuius. You are John Rugby, and you are Jack Rugby: Come, take-a your rapier, and come after my heel to de court.

Rug. Tis ready, sir, here in the porch. Caius By my trot, I tarry too long:-Od's me! Qu'ay 'oublié ? dere is some simples in my, closet, dat Ivill, not for the varid I shall leave behind.

Quick. Ah me! he'll find the young man there, and be mad.

Rug: I'll go watch. Exit RUGBY, Quick. Go; and we'll have a posset for't soon at night, in faith, at the latter end of a sea-coal fire. An honest, willing, kind fellow, as ever servant shall come in house withal; Cuius. O diable, diable! vat is in my cloand, I warrant you, no tell-tale, nor no breed-set?-Villany? larron! [Pulling Simple out.] bate : his worst fault is, that he is given to Rugby, my rapier. T prayer; he is something peevish ** that way but nobody but has his fault-but let that pass. Peter Simple, you say your name is? Sim. Ay, for fault of a better.

Quick. Good master, be content.
Caius. Verefore shall I be content-a?
Quick. The young man is an honest man.
Caius, Vat shall de honest man do in my

Quick. And master Slender's your master?closet? dere is no honest man dat shall come Sim. Ay, forsooth.

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Quick. I beseech you, be not so flegmatic; hear the truth of it: He came of an errand to me from parson Hugh oral Caius. Vello? isil f Sim. Ay, forsooth, to desire her to Quick. Peace, I pray you.

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Caius. Rugby, come to the court vit me; By gar, if I have not Anne Page, I shall turn your head out of my doorFollow my heels, Rugby. 1 [[Exeunt CATUS and RUGBY. Quick. You shall have An fools-head of

Fent. [within.] Who's within there, ho? Quick Who's there, I trow? Come near the house, I pray you. !

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Caius. Peace a your tongue-Speak-a your tale. b.!! 99771>! giu en levend end to your own. No, I know Anne's mind for that: Sim. To desire this honest gentlewoman, never a woman in Windsor knows more of your maid, to speak a good word to mistress Anne's mind than I do; nor can do more than Anne Page for my master, in the way of mar-I do with her, I thank heaven. riage. So Quick. This is all, indeed, la; but I'll ne'er put my finger in the fire, and need not. Caius. Sir Hugh send-a you? Rugby, baillez me some paper: Tarry you a little-a while. [writes. Quick. I am glad he is so quiet: if he had been thoroughly moved, you should have heard him so loud and so melancholy;-But notwithstanding, man, I'll do your master what good I can and the very yea no is,

Enter FENTON.

Fen. How now,good woman; how dost thou? Quick. The better, that it pleases your good worship to ask. E POOP KEN Kid downt Fent. What news? how does pretty mistress Anne?, vetra gli sq se si

Quick. In truth, sir, and she is pretty, and honest, and gentle and one that is your friend, ven for it.

the French doctor, my mastery call I can tell you that by the way; I praise he

him my master, look you, for I keep his house; and I wash, wring, brew, bake, scour, dress meat and drink, make the beds, and do all myself;

Sim. 'Tis a great charge, to come under one body's hand.

Quick. Are you avis'd o' that? you shall find it a great charget and to be up early and down late-but notwithstanding, (to tell you in your ear; I would have no words of it;) my master himself is in love with mistress Anne Page: butnotwithstanding that, I know Anne's mind, that's neither here nor there. Caius. You jack'nape; give-a dis letter to Sir Hugh; by gar, it is a shallenge: I vill cut his troat in de park; and I vill teach a scurvy jack-a-nape priest to meddle or make you may be gone; it is not good you tarry here:by gar, I vill cut all his two stones; by gar, he shall not have a stone to trow at his dog. [Exit SIMPLE. Quick. Alas, he speaks but for his friend. Caius. It is no matter-a for dat:-do not you tell-a me dat. I shall have Anne Page for myself?-by gar, I vill kill de Jack priest; and I have appointed mine host of de Jarterre to measure our weapon:-by går, I vill myself have Anne Page.'

Quick. Sir, the maid loves you, and all shall

Fent. Shall I do any good, thinkest thou? Shall I not lose my suit?

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Quick. Troth, sir, all is in His hands above: but, notwithstanding, master Fenton, I'll be sworn on a book, she loves you-Have not your worship a wart above your eye?

Fent. Yes, marry, have I what of that? Quick. Well, thereby hangs a tale; good faith, it is such another Nan: but, I detest t, an honest maid as ever broke bread: We had an hour's talk of that wart; I shall never laugh but in that maid's company? But, indeed, she is given too much to allicholy and mus ing But for you-Well, go to, by die mi

Fent. Well, I shall see her to-day: Hold, there's money for thee; let me have thy voice in my behalf: if thou seest her before me, commend me

·Quick. Will I? faith, that we will and I will tell your worship more of the wart, the next time we have confidence; and of other wooers.

Fent. Well, farewell I am in great haste

now.

[Exit.

Quick. Farewell to your worship. Truly, an honest gentleman; but Anne loves him not; for I know Anne's mind as well as another does:-Out upon't! what have I forgot? [Exit. 97 d # by

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1

pity me, 'tis not a soldier-like phrase; but | inherit first; for, I protest, mine never shall. I say, love me. By me, si ginest 10

Thine own true knight, By day or night,

Or any kind of light, With all his might," For thee to fight,

John Falstaff. What a Herod of Jewry is this!O wicked, wicked world!-one that is well nigh worn to pieces with age, to show himself a young gal lant! What an unweighed behaviour hath this Flemish drunkard picked (with the devil's name) out of my conversation, that he dares in this manner assay me? Why, the hath not been thrice in my company! What should I say to him? I was then frugal of my mirth: heaven forgive me!-Why, I'll exhibit a bill in the parliament for the putting down of men. How shall I be revenged on him? for revenged I will be, as sure as his guts are made of puddings.

Enter Mistress FORD.

Mrs. Ford. Mistress Page! trust me, I was going to your house.^t

Mrs. Page. And, trust me, I was coming to you. You look very ill.

Mrs. Ford. Nay, I'll ne'er believe that; 1 have to show to the contrary. 9

* Mrs. Page. 'Faith, but you do, in my mind. Mrs. Ford. Well, I do then; yet, I say, I could show you to the contrary: O, mistress Page, give me some counsel

Mrs. Page. What's the matter, woman? Mrs. Ford. O woman, if it were not for one trifling respect, I could come to such honour! Mrs. Page. Hang the trifle, woman; take the honour: What is it?-dispense with trifles: -what is it?hio 1,

Mrs. Ford. If I would but go to hell for an eternal moment or so, I could be knighted.

Mrs. Page: What?-thoit liest! Sir Alice Ford! These knights will hack; and so thon shouldst not alter the article of thy gentry.

Mrs. Ford. We burn day-light:-here, read, read;-perceive how I might be knighted.-I shall think the worse of fat men, as long as I have an eye to make difference of men's like ing: And yet he would not swear; praised women's modesty: and gave such orderly and well-behaved reproof to all uncomeliness, that I would have sworn his disposition would have gone to the truth of his words but they do no more adhere and keep place together, than the hundredth psalm to the tune of Green sleeves. What tempest, 1, trow, threw this whale, with so many tuns of oil in his belly, ashore at Windsor? How shall I be revenged on him? I think, the best way were to entertain him with hope, till the wicked fire of lust have melted him in his own grease.Did you ever hear the like?.

I warrant, he hath a thousand of these letters, writ with blank space for different names, (suré more,) and these are of the second edition: He will print them out of doubt: for he cares not what he puts into the press, when he would put us two. I had rather be a giantess, and lie under mount Pelion. Well, I will find you twenty lascivious turtles, ere one chaste man.

Mrs. Ford. Why, this is the very same; the very hand, the very words: What doth he think of us?

Mrs. Page: Nay, I know not: It makes me almost ready to wrangle with mine own ho nesty. I'll entertain myself like one that I am not acquainted withal; for, sure, unless he know some strain in me that I know not myself, he would never have boarded me in this fury.

Mrs. Ford. Boarding, call you it? I'll be sure to keep him above deck.

Mrs. Page. So will I; if he come under my hatches, I'll never to sea again. Let's be revenged on him: let's appoint him a meeting; give him a show of comfort in his suit; and lead him on with a fine baitéd delay, till he hath pawn'd his horses to mine Host of the Garter.

Mrs. Ford. Nay, I will consent to act any villainy against him, that may not sully the chariness of our honesty. O that my husband saw this letter! it would give eternal food to his jealousy.

1

Mrs. Page. Why, look, where he comes; and my good man too: he's as far from jealousy, as I am from giving him cause; and that, I hope, is an unmeasurable distance.

Mrs. Ford. You are the happier woman. Mrs. Page. Let's consult together against this greasy knight: Come hither, [They retire. Enter FORD, PISTOL, PAGE, and NYM. Ford. Well, I hope it be not so. Pist. Hope is a curtail f dog in some affairs: Sir John affects thy wife.

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Ford. Why, sir, my wife is not young.

Pist. He wooes both high and low, both rich and poor,

Both young and old, one with another, Ford;
He loves thy gally-mawfry, Ford, perpend§.
Ford. Love my wife?
[thou,

Pist. With liver burning hot: Prevent, or go
Like sir Actæon he, with Ring-wood at thy
O, odious is the name!
[heels:

Ford. What name, sir? Pist. The horn, I say: Farewell. Take heed; have open eye; for thieves do foot by night: [do sing.Take heed, ere summer comes, or cuckoo-birds Away, sir corporal Nym.Believe it, Page; he speaks sense.

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[Exit PISTOL. Ford. I will be patient; I will find out this. Nym. And this is true. [To PAGE.] I like. not the humour of lying. He hath wronged me in some humours; I should have borne the humoured letter to her: but I have a sword, and it shall bite upon my necessity. He loves id: Not A medley. Consider.

Mrs. Page, Letter for letter; but that the name of Page and Ford differs!-To thy great comfort in this mystery of ill opinions, here's the twin brother of thy letter: but let thine

• Caution. A dog that misses his game.

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