Long. Coftard the fwain, and he, fhall be our fport; And, fo to study, three years are but short.

SCENE IL

Enter Dull and Coftard with a letter.

Dull. Which is the King's own person?
Biron. This, fellow; what would'st?

Dull. I myself reprehend his own perfon, for I am his Grace's Tharborough: but I would fee his own perfon in flesh and blood.

commends you.

There's villainy abroad; this letter will tell you more. Coft. Sir, the Contempts thereof are as touching me, King, A letter from the magnificent Armado.

Biron. How low foever the matter, I hope in God for high words.

Long. A high hope for a low having'; God grant us patience!

Biron. To hear, or forbear hearing?

Long. To hear meekly, Sir, to laugh moderately, or to forbear both.

Biron. Well, Sir, be it as the Stile fhall give us caufe to climb in the merrinefs.

In former editions ;
Dull. Which is the Duke's orn
Perfon?] The King of
Navarre is in feveral Paffages,
thro' all the Copies, called the
Duke: but as this must have
fprung rather from the Inadver-
tence of the Editors, than a For-
getfulnefs in the Poet, I have
every where, to avoid Confufion,
restored King to the Text.

THEOBALD.
In old editions, A high hope

for a low heaven;] A low hea-
ven, fure, is a very intricate Mat-
ter to conceive. I dare warrant,
I have retrieved the Poet's true
Reading; and the Meaning is
this. 66
Tho' you hope for high
"Words, and fhould have them,
"it will be but a low Acquifi-
"tion at beit." This our Poet
calls a low Having: and it is a
Subftantive, which he ufes in fe-
veral other Paffages.

THEOBALD.

Coft.

Coft. The matter is to me, Sir, as concerning Jaquenetta.

The manner of it is, I was taken in the manner.
Biron. In what manner?

Coft. In manner and form, following, Sir; all thofe three. I was feen with her in the Manor-house, fitting with her upon the Form, and taken following her into the Park, which, put together, is, in manner and form following. Now, Sir, for the manner : it is the manner of a man to speak to a woman; for the form, in fome form.

Biron. For the following, Sir?

Coft. As it fhall follow in my correction; and God defend the right!

King. Will you hear the letter with attention?
Biron. As we would hear an oracle.

Coft. Such is the fimplicity of man to hearken after the flesh.

King reads.

G

REAT deputy, the welkin's vice-gerent, and fole dominator of Navarre, my foul's

earth's God, and body's foftring patron

Coft. Not a word of Coftard yet.

King. So it is

Coft. It may be fo; but if he fay it is fo, he is, in telling true, but fo, so.

King. Peace

Coft. Be to me, and every man that dares not fight! King. No words

Coft. Of other men's fecrets, I beseech you.

King. So it is, Befieged with fable-coloured melancholy, I did commend the black oppreffing humour to the most wholefome phyfick of thy health-giving air; and as I am

taken WITH the manner.] The following question arifing from these words fhews we fhould read-taken in the manner. And this was the phrafe in ufe to fignify, taken in the fact. So Dr.

4

Donne in his letters, But if I melt into melancholy while I write, I shall be taken in the manner; and I fit by one, too tender to these impreffions. WARBURTON.

a gentle

a gentleman, betook myself to walk: The time, when? about the fixth hour, when beasts most graze, birds beft peck, and men fit down to that nourishment which is call'd jupper: fo much for the time, when. Now for the ground, which: which, I mean, I walkt upon; it is ycleped, thy park. Then for the place, where; where, I mean, I did encounter that obfcene and moft prepofterous event, that draweth from my fnow-white pen the ebon-colour'd ink, which here thou vieweft, beboldeft, furveyeft, or feeft. But to the place, where ; It ftandeth north-north-east and by east from the west corner of thy curious-knotted garden. There did I fee that low-fpirited fwain, that bafe minow of thy mirth, (Coft. Me?) that unletter'd fmall-knowing foul, (Coft. Me?) that fallow vaffal, (Coft. Still me?) which, as I remember, hight Coftard; (Coft. O me!) forted and conforted, contrary to thy eftablished proclaimed edict and continent canon, with, with with, but O with this, I paffion to say wherewith :

Coft. With a wench.

King. With a child of our grandmother Eve, a female; or for thy more understanding, a woman; him, I(as my ever-esteemed duty pricks me on) have fent to thee, to receive the meed of punishment, by thy fweet Grace's Officer, Anthony Dull, a man of good repute, carriage, bearing an eftimation.

Dull. Me, an't fhall please you: I am Anthony Dull. King. For Jaquenetta, (fo is the weaker veffel call'd) which I apprehended with the aforefaid fwain, I keep her as a vaffal of thy law's fury, and fhall at the leaft of thy fweet notice bring her to trial. Thine in all compliments of devoted and heart-burning heat of duty.

Don Adriano de Armado.

Biron. This is not fo well as I look'd for, but the beft that ever I heard.

King. Ay; the best for the worst. But, firrahı, what fay you to this?

Coft. Sir, I confefs the wench.

King. Did you hear the proclamation?

Coft. I do confefs, much of the hearing it, but little of the marking of it.

King. It was proclaim'd a year's imprisonment to be taken with a wench.

Coft. I was taken with none, Sir, I was taken with a damofel.

King. Well, it was proclaimed damofel.

Coft. This was no damofel neither, Sir, she was a virgin.

King. It is fo varied too, for it was proclaim'd virgin.

Coft. If it were, I deny her virginity: I was taken with a maid.

King. This maid will not ferve your turn, Sir.
Coft. This maid will ferve my turn, Sir.

King. Sir, I will pronounce fentence; you shall faft a week with bran and water.

Coft. I had rather pray a month with mutton and porridge.

King. And Don Armado fhall be your keeper. My lord Biron, fee him deliver'd o'er.

And go we, lords, to put in practice that,

Which each to other hath fo ftrongly fworn.

[Exeunt. Biron. I'll lay my head to any good man's hat, These oaths and laws will prove an idle scorn. Sirrah, come on.

Coft. I fuffer for the truth, Sir: for true it is, I was taken with Jaquenetta, and Jaquenetta is a true girl; and therefore welcome the four cup of profperity: affliction may one day fmile again, and until then, fit thee down, forrow.

[Exeunt.

SCENE

SCENE VIII.

Changes to Armado's Houfe.

Enter Armado, and Moth.

Arm. fpirit grows melancholy?
B

OY, what fign is it, when a man of

great

Moth. A great fign, Sir, that he will look fad, Arm. Why, fadnefs is one and the felf-fame thing, dear imp'.

Moth. No, no; O lord, Sir, no.

Arm. How can't thou part fadnefs and melancholy, my tender Juvenile ?

Moth. By a familiar demonftration of the working, my tough Signior.

Arm. Why, tough Signior? why, tough Signior? Moth. Why, tender Juvenile? why, tender Juvenile?

Arm. I fpoke it, tender Juvenile, as a congruent epitheton, appertaining to thy young days, which we may nominate tender.

Moth. And I, tough Signior, as an appertinent title to your old time, which we may name tough. Arm. Pretty and apt.

Moth. How mean you, Sir, I pretty, and my faying apt? or I apt, and my faying pretty?

Arm. Thou pretty, becaufe little.

Moth. Little! pretty, becaufe little; wherefore apt?
Arm. And therefore apt, becaufe quick.

Moth. Speak you this in my praise, mafter?
Arm. In thy condign praife.

dear Imp.] Imp was anciently a term of dignity. Lord Cromwel in his laft letter to Henry VIII. prays for the imp his fon. It is now ufed only in contempt

or abhorrence; perhaps in our authour's time it was ambiguous, in which ftate it fuits well with this dialogue.

Moth.