The dramatic works and poems of William Shakespeare, with notes, original and selected, and introductory remarks to each play, by Samuel Weller Singer, F.S.A., and a life of the poet, by Charles Symmons.

84 MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR. ACT U
at an infinte rate; and that hath taught me to say Ford. I would you knew Ford, sir; that you
this: might avoid him, if' you saw him.
Fal. Hang him, mechanical salt-outter rogue!
Love like a shadow flies, when substance love pursues; I will stare him out of his wits; I will awe him
Pursuing that that lies, and flying what pursues. with my cudgel; it shall hang like a meteor o'er the
Fal. Have you received no promise of satisfac- cuckold's horns: master Brook, thou shalt know, I
tion at her hands? will predominate o'er the peasant, and thou shalt lie
Ford. Never. with his wife.-Come to me soon at night:-Ford's
Fal. Have you importuned herto such a purpose? a knave, and I will aggravate his stile;4 thou,
Ford. Never. master Brook, shalt know him for a knave and
Fal. Of what quality was your love then? cuckold:-come to me soon at night. [Exit.
Ford. Like a-fair house, built upon another man's Ford. What a damned Epicurean rascal is this!
ground, so that I have lost my edifice, by mistaking -My heart is ready to crack with impatience.the place where I erected it. Who says this is improvident jealousy?-My wife
Fal. To what purpose have you unfolded this to hath sent to him, the hour is fixed, the match is
mie' made. Would any man have thought this?-See
Ford. When I have told you that, I have told you the hell of having a false woman! my bed shall be
all. Some say, that though she appear honest to abused, my coffers ransacked, my reputation gnawn
me, yet, in other places, she enlargeth her mirth at; and I shall not only receive this villanous wrong,
so far, that there is shrewd construction made of but stand under the adoption of abominable terms,
her. Now, Sir John, here is the heart of my pur- and by him that does me this wrong. Terms!
pose: You are a gentleman of excellent breeding, names! -Amaimon sounds well; Lucifer, well;
admirable discourse, of great admittance,' authen- Barbason,5 well; yet they are devils' additions, the
tic in your place and person, generally allowed2 for names of fiends: but cuckold! wittol0 cuckold! the
your many warlike, courtlike, and learned prepa- devil himself hath not such a name. Page is an
rations. ass, a secure ass; he will trust his wife, he will not
Fal. 0, sir! be jealous: I will rather trust a Fleming with mv
Ford. Believe it, for you know it:-There is butter, parson Hugh the Welshman with my cheese,
money; spend it, spend it, spend more; spend all an Irishman with my aqua-vitme' bottle, or a thief to
I have; only give me so much of your time in ex- walk my ambling gelding, than my wife with herself;
change of it, as to lay an amiable siege to the ho- then she plots, then she ruminates, then she devises:
nesty of this Ford's wife: use your art of wooing, and what they think in their hearts they may effect,
win her consent to you; if any man may, you may they will break their hearts but they will effect.
as soon as any. I Heaven be praised for my jealousy!-Eleven o'clock
Fal. Would it apply well to the vehemency of the hour-I will prevent this, detect my wife, be reyour affection, that I should win what you would venged on Falstaff, and laugh at Page. I will about
enjoy? Methinks you prescribe to yourself very t; better three hours too soon, than a minute too
preposterously late. Fie, fie, fie! cuckold! cuckold! cuckold!
Ford. O, understand my drift! she dwells so se- [Exit.
curely on the excellency of her honour, that the folly SCENE WII. Windsor Park. Elnter CA Its and
of my soul dares not present itself; she is too bright Ruoom.
to be looked against. Now, could I come to her s. Jack Rugby.
with any detection in my hand, my desires had in- CRls. Jac by.
stance and argument to commend themselves; I RIg. Sir.
could drive her then from the ward3 of her purity, Caius. Vat is de clock, Jack?
her reputation, her marriage-vow, and a thousand Ru. t past the hour, sir, that Sir Hugh pru
other her defences, which now are too strongly em- mised to meet.
battled against me: What say you to't, Sir John? Caius. By gar, he has save his soul, dat he is no
Fal. Master Brook, I will first makl;e bold with come: he has pray his Pible vell, dat he is no
your money; next give me your hand; and last, as come: by gar, Jack Rugby, he is dead already, i
I am a gentleman, you shall, if you will, enjoy Rg. e is wise, sir; e knew your worship
Ford's wife. Rug. He is wvise, sir; he knew your worship
Ford. O good sir! would kill him, if he came.
Fal. Master Brook, I say you shall. Caius. By ga;r, de herring is no dead, so as I vill.Ford. Want no money, Sir John, you shall want kill him. Take your rapier, Jack; I vill tell vou
none. Wnhow I viii kill him.
Fal. Want no mistress Ford, Master Brook, you Rug. Alas, sir, I cannot fence.
shall want none. I shall be with her (I may tell
you,) by her own appointment; even as you came Rng. Forbear; here's company.
in to me, her assistant, or go-between, parted from Enter HosT, SHALLOW, SLENDEn, and PaGE.
me: I say; I shall be with her between ten and
eleven; for at that time the jealous rascally knave, Host.'Bless thee, bully doctor.
her husband, will be forth. Come you to me at Shal. Save you, master doctor Caius.
night; you shall know how I speed. Page. Now, good master doctor!
Ford. I am blest in your acquaintance. Do you Slen. Give you good-morrow, sir.
know Ford, sir? Caius. Vat be all you, one, too, tree, four, come
Fal. Hang him, poor cuckoldly knave! I know for?
him not:-yet I wrong him to call him poor; they Host. To see thee fight, to see thee foin,8 to see
say, the jealous wittolly knave hath masses of mo- thee traverse, to see thee here, to see thee there:
ney; for the which his wife seems to me well- to see thee pass thy punto, thy stock, thy reverse,
favoured, I wi. use her as the key of the cuckoldly thy distance, thy montant.9 Is he dead, my Ethirogue's coffer; and there's my harvest-home. opian? is he dead, my Francisco? ha, bully
1 i. e. admitted into all, or the greatest companies. a great countie or earle. " But Randle Holme, in his
2 a.llowed is approved. So in King Lear: Academy ot Armory, informs us that "I.maymnon is
- " if your sweet sway the chief whose dominion is on the north part of the inJllow obedience," &c. fernal gulf; and that Barbatos is like a Sagittarius,
n i. e. defence. and has thirty legions under him.)"
4 This is a phrase from the Herald's Office. Falstaff 6 A tame contented cuckold knowing himself to be
means that lie will add more titles to those Ford is al- one. From the Saxon wittan, to know.
reacdy distinguished by. 7 Usquebaugh.
5 Reginald Scott, in his Discovery of Witchcraft, 8 The ancient term for making a thrust in fencing..sna be consulted concerning these demons. "./ rmai- 9 Terms in fencing. The stoccado, tl.e rezvese, s&re
oen," hie says, " was King of the East, and Barbatos I from the Italian.