Be an arch villain: believe it, royal prince,
If he be lefs, he's nothing; but he's more,
Had I more name for badness.

Duke. By mine honesty,

If the be mad, (as I believe no other)
Her madness hath the oddeft frame of sense;
Such a dependency of thing on thing,
As e'er I heard in madnefs.

Ifab. Gracious duke,

Harp not on that; nor do not banish reason*
For inequality: but let your reafon serve
To make the truth appear, where it seems hid
Not hide the falfe, feems true."

Duke. Many that are not mad,

Have, fure, more lack of reafon.-What would you fay?

Ifab. I am the fifter of one Claudio,
Condemn'd upon the act of fornication
To lofe his head, condemn'd by Angelo :
I, in probation of a fifterhood,

Was fent to by my brother. One Lucio
Was then the meffenger,

Lucio. That's I, an't like your grace:

I came to her from Claudio, and defir'd her
To try her gracious fortune with lord Angelo,
For her poor brother's pardon.

Ifab. That's he, indeed.

Duke. You were not bid to fpeak.

[To Lucio.

Lucio. No, my good lord, nor wifh'd to hold my

For inequality:

-]

you have

Let not the high quality of my adversary prejudice you against me.

And hide the false, seems true.] We should read,

Not bide

WARBURTON.

JOHNSON.

Α

A business for yourself, pray heaven, you then
Be perfect.

Lucio. I warrant your honour.

Duke. The warrant's for yourself; take heed to it. Ifab. This gentleman told fomewhat of my tale. Lucio. Right.

Duke. It may be right; but you are in the wrong To speak before your time--Proceed.

Ifab. I went

To this pernicious caitiff deputy.

Duke. That's fomewhat madly spoken.
Ifab. Pardon it;

The phrafe is to the matter.

Duke. Mended again: the matter ;-Proceed.
Ifab. In brief;-to fet the needlefs process by,
How I perfuaded, how I pray'd and kneel'd,
How he refell'd me,' and how I reply'd;
(For this was of much length) the vile conclufion
I now begin with grief and fhame to utter:
He would not, but by gift of my chafte body
To his concupifcible intemperate luft,

Release my brother; and, after much debatement,
My fifterly remorfe confutes my honour,

And I did yield to him: But the next morn betimes,
His purpofe furfeiting, he fends a warrant

For my poor brother's head.

Duke. This is most likely!

How he refell'd me,

-] To refel is to refute.

Refellere et coarguere mendacium. Cicero pro Ligario.

Ben Jonfon ufes the word:

"Friends, not to refel you,

"Or any way quell you."

The modern editors changed the word to repel. Again, in The second Part of Robert Earl of Huntington, 1601.

"Therefore go on, young Bruce, proceed, refell
"The allegation." STEEVENS.

To bis concupifcible, &c.] Such is the old reading. The modern editors unauthoritatively fubflitute concupifcent. STEEVENS.

Ifab. Oh, that it were as like, as it is true!
Duke. By heaven, fond wretch, thou know'ft not
what thou speak'st;

Or else thou art fuborn'd against his honour

In hateful practice.

Firft, his integrity

Stands without blemish :-Next, it imports no reason,
That with such vehemence he should purfue
Faults proper to him.felf: if he had fo offended,
He would have weigh'd thy brother by himself,
And not have cut him off. Some one hath fet you on;
Confefs the truth, and fay, by whose advice
Thou cam'ft here to complain.

Ifab. And is this all?

Then, oh, you bleffed minifters above,
Keep me in patience; and, with ripen'd time,
Unfold the evil which is here wrapt up

' In countenance! Heaven fhield your grace from

woe,

As I, thus wrong'd, hence unbelieved

go ! Duke. I know, you'd fain be gone :-An officerTo prison with her :-Shall we thus permit A blasting and a scandalous breath to fall

4 Oh, that it were as like, as it is true!] Like is not here used for probable, but for feemly. She catches at the Duke's word, and turns it to another fenfe; of which there are a great many examples in Shakespeare, and the writers of that time. WARBURTON.

I do not fee why like may not ftand here for probable, or why the lady fhould not wifh, that fince her tale is true, it may obtain belief. If Dr. Warburton's explication be right, we should read, O! that it were as likely, as 'tis true!

Like I have never found for feemly. JOHNSON.

* In bateful practice.] Practice was ufed by the old writers for any unlawful or infidious ftratagem. So again,

and again,

2

This must needs be practice:

Let me have way to find this practice out. JOHNSON.
In countenance!] i. e. in partial favour. WARBURTON.

On

On him fo near us? This muft needs be a practice.
Who knew of your intent, and coming hither?

Ifab. One that I would were here, friar Lodowick.
Duke. A ghoftly father, belike: -who knows that
Lodowick?

Lucio. My lord, I know him; 'tis a medling friar
I do not like the man: had he been lay, my lord,
For certain words he spake against your grace
In your retirement, I had fwing'd him foundly.
Duke. Words against me? this' a good friar be-
like!

And to fet on this wretched woman here

Against our fubftitute !-Let this friar be found.
Lucio. But yefternight, my lord, she and that
friar.-

I faw them at the prifon :-
-a fawcy friar,
A very fcurvy fellow.

Peter. Bleffed be your royal grace!

I have stood by, my lord, and I have heard
Your royal ear abus'd. First, hath this woman.
Moft wrongfully accus'd your fubftitute;
Who is as free from touch or foil with her,
As fhe from one ungot.

Duke. We did believe no lefs.

Know you that friar Lodowick, which she speaks of?
Peter. I know him for a man divine and holy;

Not fcurvy, nor a temporary medler,.

6

-nor a temporary medler,] It is hard to know what is meant by a temporary medler. In its ufual fenfe, as oppofed to perpetual, it cannot be used here. It may stand for temporal: the fenfe will then be, I know him for a holy man, one that meddles not with fecular affairs. It may mean temporifing: I know him to be a holy man, one who would not temporife, or take the opportunity of your absence to defame you! Or we may read,

Not feurvy, nor a tamperer and medler :

not one who would have tampered with this woman to make her a falfe evidence againft your deputy. JOHNSON.

As

1

As he's reported by this gentleman;
And, on my truft, a man that never yet
Did, as he vouches, misreport your grace.

Lucio. My lord, moft villainously; believe it. Peter. Well, he in time may come to clear himself, But at this inftant he is fick, my lord,

Of a strange fever. Upon his mere request,
(Being come to knowledge that there was complaint
Intended 'gainst lord Angelo) came I hither

To fpeak, as from his mouth, what he doth know
Is true, and false; and what he with his oath
By all probation, will make up full clear,
Whenever he's convented." Firft, for this woman;
To justify this worthy nobleman,

8

So vulgarly and perfonally accus'd,

Her fhall you hear difproved to her eyes,
Till the herself confefs it.

Duke. Good friar, let's hear it.

Do you not fmile at this, lord Angelo?-
O heaven! the vanity of wretched fools!-
Give us fome feats.-Come, coufin Angelo,'

In

"Whenever he's conven'd.-] The firft folio reads, convented, and this is right: for to convene fignifies to affemble; but convent, to cite, or fummons. Yet, because convented hurts the measure, the Oxford editor flicks to conven'd, tho' it be nonsense, and fignifies, Whenever he is affembled together. But thus it will be, when the author is thinking of one thing and his critic of another. The poet was attentive to his fenfe, and the editor, quite throughout his performance, to nothing but the meafure; which Shakespeare having entirely neglected, like all the dramatic writers of that age, he has fpruced him up with all the exactnefs of a modera measurer of fyllables. This being here taken notice of once for all, fhall, for the future, be forgot, as if it had never been. WARBURTON.

So vulgarly-] Meaning either fo grofly, with fuch indecency of invective, or by fo mean and inadequate witneffes. JOHNSON. Come, coufin Angelo, In this I will be partial; &c.)

In former editions,

-Come