66 7 Mer. The pox of fuch antick, lisping, affected phantafies, thefe new tuners of accents:" A very good blade!a very tall man!a very good "whore!" Why, is not this a lamentable thing, grandfire, that we fhould be thus afflicted with thefe ftrange flies, these fashion-mongers, these pardonnezmoy's, who ftand fo much on the new form that they cannot fit at ease on the old bench? O, their bon's, their bon's! Enter Romeo. 8 Ben. Here comes Romeo, here comes Romeo. Mer. Without his roe, like a dried herring. O flesh, flesh, how art thou fishified? Now is he for the numbers that Petrarch flowed in: Laura to his Lady was but a kitchen-wench; marry, fhe had a better love to berhyme her; Dido a dowdy, Cleopatra a gipfy, Helen and Hero hildings and harlots: Thibé a grey eye or fo, but not to the purpofe. Signior Romeo, bonjour; there's a French falutation to your French Slop. You gave us the contrefait fairly laft night. Rom. Good-morrow to you both: What counterfeit did I give you ? Mer. The flip, Sir, the flip: can you not conceive? Rom. Pardon, good Mercutio, my business was great; and, in fuch a cafe as mine, a man may ftrain courtefy. 7 Why, is not this a lamentable thing, grandfire! Humouroufly apoftrophifing his ancellors, whofe fober times were unacquainted with the fopperies here complained of.. WARBURTON. 8 Thefe pardonnez mois,] Pardonnez-moi became the language of doubt or hefitation among men of the word, when the point of honour was grown fo delicate, that no other mode of contradiction would be endured. 9 O, their bones! their bones!] Mercutio is here ridiculing thofe frenchified fantaftical coxcomi s whom he calls pardonnez-moy's: and therefore, I fufpect here he meant to write French too. O, their bon's! their bon's! i. e. How ridiculous they make themfelves in crying out good. and being in extafies with every trifle; as he has just described them before. - a very good blade! &c. THEOR. Mer. Mer. That's as much as to fay, fuch a cafe as yours conftrains a man to bow in the hams. Rom. Meaning, to curt'fy. Mer. Thou haft moft kindly hit it. Rom. A moft courteous expofition. Mer. Nay, I am the very pink of courtesy. Mer. Right. I Rom. Why, then is my pump well flower'd. Mer. Sure wit-follow me this jeft, now, till thou haft worn out thy pump, that when the fingle fole of it is worn, the jeft may remain, after the wearing, folely fingular. Rom. O fingle-fol'd jeft, Solely fingular, for the finglenefs! Mer. Come between us, good Benvolio, my wit faints. Rom. Switch and fpurs, Switch and fpurs, or I'll cry a match. Mer. Nay, if our wits run the wild-goofe chase, I am done for thou haft more of the wild goofe in one of thy wits, than, I am fure, I have in my whole five. Was I with you there for the goofe? Rom. Thou waft never with me for any thing, when thou waft not there for the goofe. Mer. I will bite thee by the ear for that jest, Mer. Thy wit is a very bitter fweeting, It is a moft fharp fauce. Rom. And is it not well ferv'd in to a fweet goofe? 2 Mer. O, here's a wit of cheverel, that stretches from an inch narrow to an ell broad. Rom. I ftretch it out for that word broad, which added to the goofe, proves thee far and wide a broad goofe. then is my pump well flowered.] Here is a vein of wit too thin to be eafily found. The fundamental idea is, that Romeo wore pinked pumps, that is, pumps punched with holes in figures. 2 a uit of cheverel,] Cheverel is foft leather for gloves. E 2 Mer. Mer. Why, is not this better, than groaning for love? Now thou art fociable; now art thou Romeo ; now art thou what thou art, by art, as well as by nature; for this drivelling love is like a great Natural, that runs lolling up and down to hide his bauble in a hole. Ben. Stop there, stop there. Mer. Thou defireft me to stop in my tale, against the hair. Ben. Thou wouldst elfe have made thy tale large. Mer. O, thou art deceiv'd, I would have made it fhort; for I was come to the whole depth of my tale, and meant, indeed, to occupy the argument no longer. 1 Enter Nurfe, and Peter her Man. Rom. Here's goodly Geer; a Sail! a Sail! Mer. Two, two, a Shirt and a Smock. Nurfe. Peter, Peter. Anon? Nurse. My Fan, Peter. Mer. Do, good Peter, to hide her face: for her fan's the fairer of the two. Nurfe. God ye good-morrow, gentlemen. Mer. 'Tis no lefs, I tell you; for the bawdy hand of the dial is now upon the prick of noon. Nurfe. Out upon you! what a man are you? Rom. One, gentlewoman, that God hath made himself to mar. Nurfe. By my troth, it is well faid. to mar, quotha? Gentlemen, can any where I may find the young Romeo. For himfelf of you tell me Rom. I can tell you. But young Romeo will be older when you have found him, than he was when you you fought him. I am the youngest of that name, for fault of a worse. Nurse. You fay well. Mer. Yea, is the worft well? Very well took, i'faith, wifely, wifely. I defire fome confidence with you. Ben. She will indite him to fome fupper. Mer. 3 No hare, Sir, unless a hare, Sir, in a lenten pye, that is fomething stale and hoar ere it be spent. An old hare hoar, and an old hare hoar, is very good meat in Lent, But a hare, that is hoar, is too much for a score, when it hoars ere it be spent. Romeo, will you come to your father's? we'll tó dinner thither. Rom. I will follow you. Mer. Farewel, ancient lady: Farewel, lady, lady. lady. [Exeunt Mercutio, Benvolio. Nurse. I pray you, Sir, what faucy merchant was this, that was fo full of his ropery ? Rom. A gentleman, nurse, that loves to hear himfelf talk, and will speak more in a minute, than he will ftand to in a month. Nurse. An a speak any thing against me, I'll take him down an' he were luftier than he is, and twenty fuch Jacks and if I cannot, I'll find those that shall. Scurvy knave, I am none of his flirt-gills; I am 3 No bare, Si,] Mercutio having roared out, fo bo! the cry of the sportsmen when they ftait a hare; Romeo afks what he has found, And Mercutio answers, No hare, &c. The reft is a fefries of quibbles unworthy of explanation, which he who does not understand, needs not lament his ignorance. E 3 none 4 * none of his fkains-mates. And thou must stand by too, and suffer every knave to use me at his pleasure ? [To.ber man. rant you Pet. I faw no man ufe you at his pleafure: if I had, my weapon fhould quickly have been out, I warI dare draw as foon as another man, if I fee occafion in a good quarrel, and the law on my fide. Nurfe. Now, afore God, I am fo vext, that every part about me quivers. Scurvy knave! Pray you, Sir, a word and as I told you, my young lady bid me enquire you out; what the bid me fay, I will keep to myself. But first let me tell ye, if ye fhould lead her into a fool's paradife, as they fay, it were a very grofs kind of behaviour, as they fay, for the gentlewoman is young; and therefore, if and therefore, if you fhould deal double with her, truly, it were an ill thing to be offered to any gentlewoman, and very weak dealing. Rom. Commend me to thy lady and mistress, I proteft unto thee Nus fe. Good heart, and, i'faith, I will tell her as much. Lord, Lord, fhe will be a joyful woman. Rom What will thou tell her, nurfe? Thou doft not mark me. Nurfe. I will tell her, Sir, that you do proteft; which, as I take it, is a gentleman-like offer. Rom. Bid her devife fome means to come to fhrift this afternoon : And there fhe fhall at friar Laurence' Cell Be fhriev'd and married. Here is for thy pains, Rom. Go to, I fay, you fhall. Nurfe. This afternoon, Sir? Well, fhe fhall be there. Rom. And ftay, good nurfe, behind the abby-wall: Within this hour my man fhall be with thee, 4 None of his fkains-mates.] [kains was fome low play, and The word fails,mate, I do not fkains-mate, a companion at such understand, but fuppofe that play. And |