Supply your present wants, and take no doit

Of ufance for my monies, and you'll not hear me ;
This is kind I offer.

Anth. This were kindnefs.

Shy. This kindness will I fhow:-
Go with me to a notary, feal me there
Your fingle bond; and, in a merry sport,
you repay me not on fuch a day,

If

In fuch a place, fuch fum, or fums as are
Exprefs'd in the condition, let the forfeit
Be nominated for an equal pound

Of your fair flesh, to be cut off and taken
In what part of your body pleaseth me.

Anth. Content, in faith; I'll feal to fuch a bond,
And fay, there is much kindnefs in the Jew.

Baff. You fhall not feal to fuch a bond for me, I'll rather dwell in my neceffity.

Anth. Why, fear not, man; I will not forfeit it; Within these two months, that's a month before This bond expires, I do expect return

Of thrice three times the value of the bond 7.

Shy. O father Abraham, what these Christians are;
Whose own hard dealings teaches them fufpect
The thoughts of others! Pray you, tell me this;
If he should break his day, what should I gain
By the exaction of the forfeiture?

A pound of man's flefh, taken from a man,
Is not fo eftimable, profitable neither,
As flesh of muttons, beefs, or goats. I fay,
To buy his favour, I extend this friendship:
If he will take it, fo; if not, adieu;
And, for my love, I pray you, wrong me not.
Anth. Yes, Shylock, I will feal unto this bond.

5 Folioit pleafeth me. MALONE.

6-dewell in my neceffity.] To dwell feems in this place to mean the fame as to continue. To abide has both the fenfes of habita tion and continuance. JOHNSON.

7 The value of the bond.] Folio-this bond. MALONE.

Shy.

Shy. Then meet me forthwith at the notary's;
Give him direction for this merry bond,
And I will go and purfe the ducats ftrait;
See to my houfe, left in the fearful guard?
Of an unthrifty knave; and presently
I will be with you.

Anth. Hie thee, gentle Jew.

[Exit,

This Hebrew will turn Chriftian; he grows kind.
Baff. I like not fair terms, and a villain's mind.
Anth. Come on; in this there can be no difmay,
My ships come home a month before the day.

[Exeunt.

ACT II.

SCENE I

Belmont.

Enter the Prince of Morocco, and three or four follow-
ers accordingly; with Portia, Neriffa and her train.
Flourish Cornets.

Mor. Miflike me not for my complexion,
The fhadow'd livery of the burnish'd fun,
To whom I am a neighbour, and near bred.
Bring me the fairest creature northward born,
Where Phoebus' fire scarce thaws the ificles,
And let us make incifion for your love,
To prove whose blood is reddeft, his, or mines.

I tell

left in the FEARFUL guard, &c.] Fearful guard, is a guard that is not to be trusted, but gives caufe of fear. To fear was anciently to give as well as feel terrours. JOHNSON. So, in Hen. IV. P. I.

"A mighty and a fearful head they are." STEEVENS. 8 I like not fair terms,] Kind words, good language. JOHNSON.. 9 To prove whofe blood is reddeft, his, or mine.] To understand how the tawney prince, whofe favage dignity is very well fup

M 2

ported,

I tell thee, lady, this afpect of mine
Hath fear'd the valiant; by my love, I fwear,
The best regarded virgins of our clime

Have lov'd it too: I would not change this hue,
Except to steal your thoughts, my gentle queen.
Por. In terms of choice I am not folely led
By nice direction of a maiden's eyes:

Befides, the lottery of my destiny

Bars me the right of voluntary chufing:
But, if my
father had not fcanted me,

And hedg'd me by his will, to yield myself
His wife, who wins me by that means I told you,
Yourself, renowned prince, then stood as fair,
As any comer I have look'd on yet,

For my affection.

Mor. Even for that I thank you;

Therefore, I pray you, lead me to the cafkets,
To try my fortune. By this fcimitar,-
That flew the Sophy, and a Perfian prince,
That won three fields of Sultan Solyman,-
I would out-ftare the fterneft eyes that look,
Out-brave the heart most daring on the earth,

ported, means to recommend himself by this challenge, it must be remembered that red blood is a traditionary fign of courage: Thus Macbeth calls one of his frighted foldiers, a lilly liver'd lown; again, in this play, Cowards are faid to have livers as awhite as milk; and an effeminate and timorous man is termed a milk/op. JOHNSON,

Hath fear'd the valiant ;] i. e. terrify'd. See vol. ii. p. 33.

STEEVENS.

And hedg'd me by his wit-] I fuppofe we may fafely read: and bedg'd me by his will. Confined me by his will. JOHNSON. 3 That flew the Sophy, &c.] Shakspeare feldom escapes well when he is entangled with geography. The prince of Morocco must have travelled far to kill the Sophy of Perfia. JOHNSON.

It were well, if Shakspeare had never entangled himself qvith geography worse than in the prefent cafe. If the prince of Morocco be fuppofed to have ferved in the army of fultan Soliman (the fecond, for instance), I fee no geographical objection to his having killed the Sophi of Perfia. See D'Herbelot in Soliman Ben Selim TYRWHITT

Pluck

Pluck the young fucking cubs from the fhe-bear,
Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey,
To win thee, lady: But, alas the while!
If Hercules, and Lichas, play at dice
Which is the better man, the greater throw
May turn by fortune from the weaker hand :
So is Alcides beaten by his page +;

And fo may I, blind fortune leading me,
Mifs that which one unworthier may attain,
And die with grieving.

Por. You must take your chance;
And either not attempt to chufe at all,

Or fwear, before you chufe,-if you chufe wrong, Never to speak to lady afterward

In way of marriage; therefore be advis'd .

Mor. Nor will not; come, bring me unto my.

chance.

Por. First forward to the temple; after dinner Your hazard fhall me made.

Mor. Good fortune then!
To make be bleft, or curfed'ft among men.

[Cornets.

[Exeunt.

4 So is Alcides beaten by his rage ;] Though the whole fet of edi tions concur in this reading, it is corrupt at bottom. Let us look into the poet's drift, and the hiftory of the perfons mentioned in the context. If Hercules, (fays he) and Lichas were to play at dice for the decifion of their fuperiority, Lichas, the weaker man, might have the better caft of the two. But how then is Alcides beaten by his rage? The poet means no more, than, if Lichas had the better throw, fo might Hercules himself be beaten by Lichas. And who was he, but a poor unfortunate fervant of Hercules, that unknowingly brought his mafter the envenomed fhirt, dipt in the blood of the Centaur Neffus, and was thrown headlong into the fea for his pains; this one circumstance of Lichas's quality known, fufficiently afcertains the emendation I have fubftituted, page instead of rage. THEOBALD.

5 Therefore be advis'd.] Therefore be not precipitant; confider well what you are to do. Advis'd is the word oppofite to rash.

M 3

JOHNSON.

SCENE

SCENE II.

A Street in Venice.

Enter Launcelot Gobbo.

Laun. Certainly, my confcience will ferve me to run from this Jew my mafter: The fiend is at mine elbow ; and tempts me, faying to me, Gobbo, Launcelot Gobbo; good Launcelot, or good Gobbo, or good Launcelot Gobbo, ufe your legs, take the start, run away: My confcience fays,-no; take heed honeft Launcelot ; take heed, honeft Gobbo; or, as aforefaid, honeft Launcelot Gobbo; do not run ; fcorn running with thy heels 7: Well, the most courageous fiend bids me pack; via! fays the fiend; away! fays the fiend, for the heavens ; roufe up a brave mind, fays the fiend, and run. Well, my confcience, hanging about the neck of my heart, fays very wifely to me, my honeft friend Launcelot, being an honeft man's fon,-or rather an honeft woman's

6 The old copies read-Enter the Clown alone; and throughout the play this character is called the Clown at most of his entrances or exits. STEEVENS.

7 Scorn running with thy heels:] Launcelot was defigned for a wag, but perhaps not for an abfurd one. We may therefore fuppofe, no fuch expreffion would have been put in his mouth, as our author had cenfured in another character. When Piftol fays, he hears with ears," Sir Hugh Evans very properly is made to exclaim, "The tevil and his tam! what phrafe is this, he hears with ears? why it is affectations." To talk of running with one's heels, has fcarce lefs of abfurdity. It has been fuggested, that we should read and point the paffage as follows: "Do not run; fcorn running; withe thy heels:" i. e. connect them with a withe, (a band made of ofiers) as the legs of cattle are hampered in fome countries to prevent their ftraggling far from home. The Irishman in Sir John Oldcastle petitions to be hanged in a withe ; and Chapman has the following paffage:

"Till I, of cut-up ofiers, did imply,

"A with a fathom long, with which his feete

66

"I made together in a fure league meete.

STEEVENS.

fon;