on the Rialto; a beggar, that us'd to come fo smug upon the mart!-let him look to his bond ; he was wont to call me ufurer-let him look to his bond; he was wont to lend mony for a chriftian courtefie ; - let him look to his bond.

Sal. Why, I am fure, if he forfeit, thou wilt not take his flesh what's that good for?

Shy. To bait fish withal. If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge; he hath difgrac'd me, and hinder'd me of half a million, laught at my loffes, mock'd at my gains, fcorn'd my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated mine enemies; and what's his reafon? I am a few. Hath not a Few eyes? hath not a few hands, organs, dimenfions, fenles, affections, paffions? fed with the fame food, hurt with the fame weapons, fubject to the fame difeafes, heal'd by the fame means, warm'd and cool'd by the fame winter and fummer, as a chriftian is? if you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh if you poifon us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, fhall we not revenge? if we are like you in the reft, we will refemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a chriftian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a christian wrong a few, what fhould his fafferance be by chriftian example? why, Revenge. The Villainy you teach me, I will execute; and it thall go hard, but I will better the inftruction.

Enter a Servant from Anthonio.

Serv. Gentlemen, my mafter Anthonio is at his houfe, and defires to speak with you both.

and with this name the Jew honours him when he is going to fup

with him.

I'll go in hate to feed upon

The protigal chriftian

But Anthonio was a plain, referved, parfimonious merchant, be af fured therefore we should read, bankrupt FOR a prodigal, i. e. he is become bankrupt by supplying the extravagancies of his friend Baffanio.

WARBURTON. There is no need of alteration. There could be, in Shylock's opinion, no prodigality more culpable than fuch liberality as that by which a man expofes himself to ruin for his friend.

Sal.

Jal. We have been up and down to seek him.

Enter Tubal.

Sola. Here comes another of the tribe; a third cannot be match'd, unless the devil himself turn Jew.

[Exeunt Sala. and Solar. Shy. How now, Tubal, what news from Genoua ? haft thou found my daughter ?

Tub. I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot find her.

Shy. Why there, there, there, there! a diamond gone, coft me two thousand ducats in Frankfort! the curfe never fell upon our nation 'till now, I never felt it 'till now-two thousand ducats in that, and other precious, precious jewels !-I would, my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear; O, would the were hers'd at my foot, and the ducats in her coffin. No news of them-why, fo!- and I know not what's fpent in the fearch: why, thou lofs upon lofs ! the thief gone with fo much, and fo much to find the thief; and no fatisfaction, no revenge, nor no ill luck ftirring, but what lights o' my fhoulders; no fighs but o' my breathing, no tears but o' my shedding.

Tub. Yes, other men have ill luck too; Anthonio, as I heard in Genoua

Shy. What, what, what? ill luck, ill luck?

Tub. Hath an Argofie caft away, coming from Tripolis.

Shy. I thank God, I thank God, is it true? is it true?

Tub, I spoke with fome of the failors that escaped the wreck.

Shy. I thank thee, good Tubal; good news, good news; ha, ha, where in Genoua ?

Tub. Your daughter spent in Genoua, as I heard, one night, fourfcore ducats.

Shy. Thou ftick'ft a dagger in me; I fhall never fee my gold again-fourfcore ducats at a fitting, fourscore ducats!

Tub. There came divers of Anthonio's creditors in my company to Venice, that fwear he cannot chufe but break.

Shy.

Shy. I am glad of it. I'll plague him, I'll torture him. I am glad of it.

Tub. One of them fhew'd me a ring, that he had of your daughter for a monky.

It

Shy. Out upon her! thou torturest me, Tubal. was my Turquoife, I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor; I would not have given it for a wilderness of

monkies.

Tub. But Antbonio is certainly undone.

Shy. Nay, that's true, that's very true; go fee me an officer, befpeak him a fortnight before. I will have the heart of him, if he forfeit; for were he out of Venice, I can make what merchandize I will. Go, go, Tubal, and meet me at our fynagogue; go, good Tubal; at our fynagogue, Tubal. [Exeunt.

Enter Baffanio, Portia, Gratiano, and attendants.

The Cafkets are set out.
Por. Pray you, tarry-paufe a day or two,

you hazard; for in chufing wrong
I lofe your company; therefore, forbear a while.
There's fomething tells me, but it is not love.
I would not lofe you; and you know yourself,
Hate counfels not in fuch a quality.

But left you should not understand me well,
And yet a maiden hath no tongue but thought,
I would detain you here fome month or two,
Before you venture for me. I could teach you
How to chufe right, but I am then forfworn :
So will I never be ; fo you may
mifs me;
But if you do, you'll make me with a fin,
That I had been forfworn. Befhrew your eyes
They have o'erlook'd me, and divided me ;
One half of me is yours; th' other half yours,
Mine own, I would fay but if mine, then yours;
And fo all yours. Alas! thefe naughty times
Put bars between the owners and their rights:

:

And

Prove it fo, (1)

And fo though yours, not yours.
Let fortune go to hell for it-Not I. (2)
I fpeak too long, but 'tis to piece the time,
To eke it, and to draw it out in length,
To stay you from election.

Baff. Let me chufe:

For as I am, I live upon the rack.

Por. Upon the rack, Bassanio? then confess, What treason there is mingled with your love. Baff. None, but that ugly treafon of miftruft, Which makes me fear th' enjoying of my love: There may as well be amity and life

"Tween fnow and fire, as treason and my love.

Por. Ay, but I fear, you speak upon the rack;
Where men enforced do fpeak any thing.

Baf. Promife me life, and I'll confefs the truth.
Por. Well then, confefs and live.
Bal. Confefs and love,

Had been the very fum of my confeffion.
O happy torment, when my torturer
Doth teach me answers for deliverance!
But let me to my fortune and the caskets.

If

Por. Away then! I am lockt in one of them;
you do love me, you will find me out.

Nerija, and the reft, ftand all aloof,

(1) Ard fo though yours, not yours. Prove it fo,] It may be more grammatically read,

And fo though yours, I'm not yours.

(2) Let fortune go to hell for it- -not I.] This line is very obfcure. The form of the expreffion alludes to what he had faid of being forfworn. After fome ftruggle, the refolves to keep her oath: And then fays, Let fortune go to hell for it. For what! not for telling or favouring Bafanio, which was the temptation fhe then lay under: for fortune had taken no oath. And, furely, for the more favouring a man of merit, fortune did not deserve (confidering how rarely the tranfgreffes this way) fo fevere a sentence. Much lefs could the fpeaker, who favour'd Baffanio, think fo. The meaning then muft be, Let fortune rather go to hell for not favouring Baffanio, than I for favouring him. So loofely does our author fometimes ufe his pronouns." not I does not fign fy, Let not I go to bell; for then it should be Let not me. But it is a diftinct fentence of itself. And is a very common proverbial fpeech, fignifying, I will have nothing to do with it. Which if the Oxford Elitor had confidered, he might have spared his pains in changing I into me. WARBURTON.

Let

Let mufick found, while he doth make his choice;
Then, if he lose, he makes a swan-like end,
Fading in mufick. That the comparison
May ftand more just, my eye shall be the stream
And wat❜ry death-bed for him.-He may win:
And what is mufick then? then mufick is
Even as the flourish, when true fubjects bow
To a new-crowned monarch: fuch it is,
As are those dulcet founds in break of day,
That creep into the dreaming bridegroom's ear,
And fummon him to marriage. Now he goes,
With no less prefence, (3) but with much more love,
Than young Alcides, when he did redeemn
The virgin-tribute, paid by howling Troy
To the fea-monfter; I ftand for facrifice,
The reft aloof are the Dardanian wives,
With bleared visages come forth to view
The iffue of th' exploit. Go, Hercules!

Live thou, I live. With much, much more difmay (4)
I view the fight, than thou, that mak'st the fray.

[Mufick within.

A Song, whilft Baffanio, comments on the caskets to

bimfelf.

(3) With no lefs prefence,] With the fame Dignity of Mien.

(4) Live thou, I live.

With much, much more difmay

I view the fight, thar thou, that mak'ft the fray.

I. Live then, I live with much more difmay

To view the fight, than, &c.

II. Live thou, I live with much more difmay
I view the fight, than, &c.

III. and IV. give the present reading.

}

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(5) Reply] These words, reply, reply, were in all the late editions, except Sir T. Hanmer's, put as a verse in the song, but in all the old copies stand as a marginal direction.

Let