My honour would not let ingratitude

So much besmear it. Pardon me, good lady;
For, by these blessèd candles of the night,31

Had you been there, I think you would have begg'd

The ring of me to give the worthy Doctor.

Portia. Let not that Doctor e'er come near my house. Since he hath got the jewel that I loved,

And that which you did swear to keep for me,

I will become as liberal as you :

I'll not deny him any thing I have.

Neris. Nor I his clerk; therefore be well advised 32 How you do leave me to mine own protection.

Grati. Well, do you so: let not me take him then; For, if I do, I'll mar the young clerk's pen.

Anto. I am th' unhappy subject of these quarrels.

Portia. Sir, grieve not you; you're welcome notwithstanding.

Bass. Portia, forgive me this enforced wrong;

And in the hearing of these many friends

I swear to thee, even by thine own fair eyes,

Wherein I see myself,

Portia.

Mark you but that!

In both my eyes he doubly sees himself;

In each eye, one : — - swear by your double self,

And there's an oath of credit!

Bass.

Nay, but hear me :

gentle course. And Hamlet, i. 1: "Well ratified by law and heraldry": meaning the law of heraldry.

31 The "candles of the night" are the Moon and stars. So in Romeo and Juliet, iii. 5: "Night's candles are burnt out, and jocund day stand tiptoe on the misty mountain-tops."

82 Advised, as before, for cautious or circumspect. See page 87, note 33. - Well, here, has the force of very.

Pardon this fault, and by my soul I swear

I never more will break an oath with thee.

Anto. I once did lend my body for his wealth; 33
Which, but for him that had your husband's ring,
Had quite miscarried: I dare be bound again,
My soul upon the forfeit, that your lord
Will never more break faith advisedly.34

Portia. Then you shall be his surety: give him this ;
And bid him keep it better than the other.

Anto. Here, Lord Bassanio; swear to keep this ring.
Bass. By Heaven, it is the same I gave the Doctor!
Portia. I had it of him; pardon me, Bassanio.
Neris. And pardon me, my gentle Gratiano.
Grati. Why, this is like the mending of highways
In Summer, when the ways are fair enough.

Portia. You are all amazed:

Here is a letter, read it at your leisure;
It comes from Padua, from Bellario:

There you shall find that Portia was the Doctor;
Nerissa there her clerk. Lorenzo here

Shall witness I set forth as soon as you,
And even but now return'd; I have not yet
Enter'd my house. — Antonio, you are welcome;
And I have better news in store for you
Than you expect: unseal this letter soon;
There you shall find three of your argosies
Are richly come to harbour suddenly.35

33 That is, for his welfare or his good. Wealth is only another form of weal: we say indifferently common-weal or common-wealth; and the commonwealth is the good that men have in common. - Which, in the next line, refers to the loan of Antonio's body.

34 Advisedly is deliberately; much the same as in note 32.

35 Suddenly for unexpectedly; as in the Litany we pray to be delivered from "sudden death."

You shall not know by what strange accident

I chanced on this letter.

Bass. Were you the Doctor, and I knew you not?

Anto. Sweet lady, you have given me life and living ;36 For here I read for certain that my ships

Are safely come to road.37

Portia.

How now, Lorenzo !

My clerk hath some good comforts too for you.

Neris. Ay, and I'll give them him without a fee.There do I give to you and Jessica,

From the rich Jew, a special deed of gift,

After his death, of all he dies possess'd of.

Loren. Fair ladies, you drop manna in the way Of starved people.

Portia.

It is almost morning,

And yet I'm sure you are not satisfied

Of these events at full. Let us go in ;
And charge us there upon inter'gatories,38
And we will answer all things faithfully.

Grati. Well, while I live, I'll fear 39 no other thing

So sore as keeping safe Nerissa's ring.

[Exeunt.

36 Life and the means of living. Portia has given Antonio life in delivering him from the clutches of Shylock.

37 For some comment on this part of the scene, see the Introduction, page 75.

38 In the Court of Queen's Bench, when a complaint is made against a person for a "contempt," the practice is that, before sentence is finally pronounced, he is sent into the Crown Office, and, being there "charged upon interrogatories," he is made to swear that he will "answer all things faithfully."- LORD Campbell.

39 Fear, again, in the sense of fear for, or be anxious about. See page 157, note I.

CRITICAL NOTES.

ACT I., SCENE I.

Page 80. Like signiors and rich burghers of the flood. The old copies have "burghers on the flood." Corrected by Steevens. See the quotation from As You Like It, in foot-note 5.

P. 81. And see my wealthy Andrew dock'd in sand. So Rowe. The old copies have "Andrew docks in sand." Hardly worth noting.

P. 82. Salar. Why, then you are in love.

Anto.

Fie, fie! So the old copies, leaving the verse defective. Dyce says, "I have little doubt that Shakespeare wrote 'In love! fie, fie!'"

P. 84.

Who, I'm very sure,

If they should speak, would almost damn those ears, &c. — Instead of who, the old copies have when, leaving would damn without a subject. Collier's second folio retains when, and changes would to 'twould, which Dyce adopts. The correction of when to who was made by Rowe.

P. 85. Is that any thing now? - The old copies read "It is that any thing now." Hardly deserving of notice, but that Collier retains the old reading, and attempts to explain it.

P. 87. I owe you much, and, like a wilful youth,

That which I owe is lost. Instead of wilful, Warburton proposed witless, and Collier's second folio has wasteful. The latter is a plausible change.

197