LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST.

ACT I.

SCENE I. Navarre. A Park, with a Palace in it. Enter the KING, BIRON, LONGAVILLE, and DUMAIN.

KING. Let fame, that all hunt after in their lives, Live register'd upon our brazen tombs, And then grace us in the disgrace of death; When, spite of cormorant devouring time, The endeavour of this present breath may buy That honour, which fhall bate his fcythe's keen edge, And make us heirs of all eternity.

Therefore, brave conquerors!—for fo you are, against your own affections,

That war

And the huge army of the world's defires,—
Our late edict fhall strongly stand in force:
Navarre fhall be the wonder of the world;
Our court fhall be a little Academe,
Still and contemplative in living art.
You three, Birón, Dumain, and Longaville,
Have fworn for three years' term to live with me,
My fellow-fcholars, and to keep thofe ftatutes,
That are recorded in this schedule here:

Your oaths are past, and now fubfcribe your names;

That his own hand may strike his honour down;
That violates the smallest branch herein:

If you are arm'd to do, as fworn to do,

Subscribe to your deep oath, and keep it too.

LONG. I am refolv'd: 'tis but a three years' faft; The mind shall banquet, though the body pine: Fat paunches have lean pates; and dainty bits Make rich the ribs, but bank'rout quite the wits.

DUM. My loving lord, Dumain is mortified;
The groffer manner of these world's delights
He throws upon the grofs world's bafer flaves:
To love, to wealth, to pomp, I pine and die;
With all these living in philofophy.

BIRON. I can but say their protestation over,
So much, dear liege, I have already fworn,
That is, To live and ftudy here three years.
But there are other ftrict obfervances :
As, not to see a woman in that term;
Which, I hope well, is not enrolled there :
And, one day in a week to touch no food;
And but one meal on every day befide;
The which, I hope, is not enrolled there:
And then, to fleep but three hours in the night,
And not be feen to wink of all the day;
(When I was wont to think no harm all night,
And make a dark night too of half the day ;)
Which, I hope well, is not enrolled there.
O, these are barren tasks, too hard to keep;
Not to fee ladies, ftudy, faft, not fleep.

KING. Your oath is pass'd to pass away from these,
BIRON. Let me fay, no, my liege, an if

I only swore, to study with your grace,

you please ;

And stay here in your court for three years' space.

LONG. You fwore to that, Biron, and to the reft. BIRON. By yea and nay, fir, then I fwore in jeft.What is the end of ftudy? let me know.

[know. KING. Why, that to know, which elfe we should not BIRON. Things hid and barr'd, you mean, from com

mon fenfe?

KING. Ay, that is ftudy's god-like recompenfe.
BIRON. Come on then, I will fwear to study so,
To know the thing I am forbid to know;
As thus,-To ftudy where I well may dine,
When I to feaft exprefsly am forbid;
Or, study where to meet fome mistress fine,

When mistreffes from common fenfe are hid;
Or, having fworn too hard-a-keeping oath,
Study to break it, and not break my

troth. If ftudy's gain be thus, and this be fo,

Study knows that, which yet it doth not know:

Swear me to this, and I will ne'er fay, no.

KING. These be the stops that hinder study quite,

And train our intellects to vain delight.

BIRON. Why, all delights are vain; but that most vain, Which, with pain purchas'd, doth inherit pain: As, painfully to pore upon a book,

To seek the light of truth; while truth the while
Doth falfely blind the eyesight of his look :

Light, feeking light, doth light of light beguile :
So, ere you find where light in darkness lies,
Your light grows dark by lofing of your eyes.
Study me how to please the eye indeed,
By fixing it upon a fairer eye;

Who dazzling fo, that eye shall be his heed,

And give him light that was it blinded by, Study is like the heaven's glorious fun,

That will not be deep fearch'd with faucy looks; Small have continual plodders ever won,

Save bafe authority from others' books. These earthly godfathers of heaven's lights, That give a name to every fixed star,

Have no more profit of their shining nights,

Than those that walk, and wot not what they are. Too much to know, is, to know nought but fame; And every godfather can give a name.

KING. How well he's read, to reason against reading! DUM. Proceeded well, to stop all good proceeding! LONG. He weeds the corn, and ftill lets grow the [breeding.

weeding.

BIRON. The spring is near, when green geefe are à DUM. How follows that?

BIRON. Fit in his place and time.

DUM. In reafon nothing.

BIRON. Something then in rhime.

LONG. Biron is like an envious fneaping froft,

That bites the first-born infants of the fpring.

[boaft,

BIRON. Well, fay I am; why fhould proud fummer Before the birds have any cause to fing?

Why should I joy in an abortive birth?

At Chriftmas I no more defire a rofe,

Than wish a snow in May's new-fangled fhows;
But like of each thing, that in feafon grows.

So you, to study now it is too late,

Climb o'er the house to unlock the little gate.

KING. Well, fit you out: go home, Biron; adieu!

BIRON. No, my good lord; I have fworn to stay with

you:

And, though I have for barbarifm fpoke more;

Than for that angel knowledge you can fay,

Yet confident I'll keep what I have fwore,

And bide the penance of each three years' day. Give me the paper, let me read the famé;

And to the ftrict'ft decrees I'll write my name.
KING. How well this yielding rescues thee from shame!
BIRON. [Reads.] Item, That no woman shall come within
a mile of my court.-

And hath this been proclaimed?

LONG. Four days ago.

BIRON. Let's fee the penalty.

[Reads.]-On pain of lofing her tongue.-

Who devis'd this?

LONG. Marry, that did I.

BIRON. Sweet lord, and why?

LONG. To fright them hence with that dread penalty. BIRON. A dangerous law against gentility!

[Reads.] Item, If any man be feen to talk with a woman within the term of three years, he shall endure fuch publick fhame as the reft of the court can poffibly devife. This article, my liege, yourself must break;

For, well you know, here comes in embassy The French king's daughter, with yourself to speak,A maid of grace, and cómplete majesty,About furrender-up of Aquitain

To her decrepit, fick, and bed-rid father: Therefore this article is made in vain,

Or vainly comes the admired princess hither.

KING. What fay you, lords? why, this was quite forgot.
BIRON. So ftudy evermore is overshot ;

While it doth study to have what it would,
It doth forget to do the thing it should:
And when it hath the thing it hunteth most,
'Tis won, as towns with fire; fo won, fo loft.