Poison more deadly than a mad dog's tooth. Luc. She never reprehended him but mildly, When he demean'd himself rough, rude, and wildly.— Why bear you these rebukes, and answer not? Adr. She did betray me to my own reproof.Good people, enter, and lay hold on him. Abb. No; not a creature enters in my house. Adr. Then, let your servants bring my husband forth. Abb. Neither: he took this place for sanctuary; And it shall privilege him from your hands Till I have brought him to his wits again, Or lose my labour in essaying it. Adr. I will attend my husband, be his nurse, Diet his sickness; for it is my office, And will have no attorney but myself; And therefore let me have him home with me. Abb. Be patient; for I will not let him stir Till I have us'd the approved means I have, With wholesome syrups, drugs, and holy prayers, To make of him a formal man again: It is a branch and parcel of mine oath, A charitable duty of my order: Therefore depart, and leave him here with me. Adr. I will not hence, and leave my husband here: And ill it doth beseem your holiness To separate the husband and the wife. Abb. Be quiet, and depart: thou shalt not have him. [Exit. Luc. Complain unto the duke of this indignity. Adr. Come, go: I will fall prostrate at his feet, And never rise until my tears and prayers Have won his grace to come in person hither, And take perforce my husband from the abbess. Sec. Mer. By this, I think, the dial points at five: Anon, I'm sure, the duke himself in person Comes this way to the melancholy vale, The place of death and sorry execution, Behind the ditches of the abbey here. Ang. Upon what cause? Sec. Mer. To see a reverend Syracusan merchant,Who put unluckily into this bay Against the laws and statutes of this town,- Ang. See where they come: we will behold his death. Luc. Kneel to the duke before he pass the abbey. Duke. Yet once again proclaim it publicly, [bess! Adr. Justice, most sacred duke, against the ab Duke. She is a virtuous and a reverend lady: Whom I made lord of me and all I had, By rushing in their houses, bearing thence Enter a Servant. [fire; Serv. O mistress, mistress! shift and save yourself! My master and his man are both broke loose, Beaten the maids a-row, and bound the doctor, Whose beard they have sing'd off with brands of And ever as it blaz'd they threw on him Great pails of puddled mire to quench the hair. My master preaches patience to him, and the while His man with scissars nicks him like a fool; And sure, unless you send some present help, Between them they will kill the conjurer. Adr. Peace, fool! thy master and his man are And that is false thou dost report to us. [here; Serv. Mistress, upon my life, I tell you true; I have not breath'd almost, since I did see it. [Cry within. Hark, hark! I hear him, mistress: fly, be gone! Duke. Come, stand by me; fear nothing.-Guard with halberds! Adr. Ah me, it is my husband: Witness you, That he is borne about invisible: Even now we hous'd him in the abbey here; Even for the service that long since I did thee, Ege. Unless the fear of death doth make me dote, I see my son Antipholus, and Dromio! Ant. E. Justice, sweet prince, against that woman there! She whom thou gav'st to me to be my wife, That she this day hath shameless thrown on me. Duke. A grievous fault.-Say, woman, didst thou Adr. No, my good lord: myself, he, and my sister, To-day did dine together. So befall my soul, As this is false he burdens me withal! Luc. Ne'er may I look on day, nor sleep on night, But she tells to your highness simple truth. Ang. O perjur'd woman! They are both forIn this the madman justly chargeth them. [sworn: Ant. E. My liege, I am advised what I say; Neither disturb'd with the effect of wine, Nor heady-rash, provok'd with raging ire, Albeit my wrongs might make one wiser mad. This woman lock'd me out this day from dinner: That goldsmith there, were he not pack'd with her, Could witness it, for he was with me then; Who parted with me to go fetch a chain, Promising to bring it to the Porcupine, Where Balthazar and I did dine together. Our dinner done, and he not coming thither, I went to seek him: in the street I met him, And in his company, that gentleman. There did this perjur'd goldsmith swear me down, That I this day of him receiv'd the chain, Which, God he knows, I saw not: for the which He did arrest me with an officer. I did obey; and sent my peasant home For certain ducats: he with none return'd, Then fairly I bespoke the officer To go in person with me to my house. By the way we met My wife, her sister, and a rabble more Of vile confederates. Along with them They brought one Pinch, a hungry lean-fac'd villain, A thread-bare juggler, and a fortune-teller, For these deep shames and great indignities. [him, Duke. But had he such a chain of thee, or no? Ang. He had, my lord; and when he ran in here, These people saw the chain about his neck. Sec. Mer. Besides, I will be sworn these ears of Heard you confess you had the chain of him, [mine After you first forswore it on the mart: : Duke. Why, what an intricate impeach is this! I think you all have drunk of Circe's cup. If here you hous'd him, here he would have been; If he were mad, he would not plead so coldly:You say he dined at home; the goldsmith here Denies that saying.-Sirrah, what say you? Dro. E. Sir, he dined with her there, at the Porcupine. [ring. Cour. He did; and from my finger snatch'd that Ant. E. 'Tis true, my liege; this ring I had of her. Duke. Saw'st thou him enter at the abbey here? Cour. As sure, my liege, as I do see your grace. Duke. Why, this is strange.-Go call the abbess [Exit an Attendant. hither. I think you are all mated, or stark mad. Duke. Speak freely, Syracusan, what thou wilt. Ege. Is not your name, Sir, called Antipholus? And is not that your bondman Dromio? Dro. E. Within this hour I was his bondman, Sir; But he, I thank him, gnaw'd in two my cords: Now am I Dromio, and his man, unbound. Æge. I am sure you both of you remember me. Dro. E. Ourselves we do remember, Sir, by you; For lately we were bound, as you are now. You are not Pinch's patient, are you, Sir? Age. Why look you strange on me? you know me well. Ant. E. I never saw you in my life, till now. Age. O, grief hath chang'd me, since you saw me last; And careful hours, with Time's deformed hand, But tell me yet, dost thou not know my voice? Age. Dromio, nor thou? Dro. E. No, trust me, Sir, nor I. Dro. E. Ay, Sir; but I am sure I do not; and whatsoever a man denies, you are now bound to believe him. Ege. Not know my voice? O, time's extremity! Hast thou so crack'd and splitted my poor tongue In seven short years, that here my only son Knows not my feeble key of untun'd cares? Though now this grained face of mine be hid In sap-consuming winter's drizzled snow, And all the conduits of my blood froze up, Yet hath my night of life some memory, My wasting lamps some fading glimmer left, My dull deaf ears a little use to hear: All these old witnesses-I cannot errTell me thou art my son Antipholus. Ant. E. I never saw my father in my life. Æge. But seven years since, in Syracusa, boy, Thou know'st we parted: but perhaps, my son, Thou sham'st to acknowledge me in misery. Ant. E. The duke, and all that know me in the city, Can witness with me that it is not so: Duke. I tell thee, Syracusan, twenty years Re-enter Abbess, with ANTIPHQLUS of Syracuse and DROMIO of Syracuse. Abb. Most mighty duke, behold a man much wrong'd. [All gather to see them. Adr. I see two husbands, or mine eyes deceive me! Duke. One of these men is Genius to the other; And so of these: which is the natural man, And which the spirit? Who deciphers them? Dro. S. I, Sir, am Dromio: command him away. Dro. E. I, Sir, am Dromio: pray let me stay. Ant. S. Egeon, art thou not? or else his ghost? Dro. S. O, my old master! who hath bound him here? Abb. Whoever bound him, I will loose his bonds, That bore thee at a burden two fair sons: Ege. If I dream not, thou art Æmilia: Abb. By men of Epidamnum, he and I, Duke. Why, here begins his morning story right: Ant. S. No, Sir, not I; I came from Syracuse. Duke. Stay, stand apart; I know not which is which. Ant. E. I came from Corinth, my most gracious lord, Dro. E. And I with him. [warrior, Ant. E. Brought to this town by that most famous Adr. And are not you my husband? Ant. S. And so do I; yet did she call me so: Ang. That is the chain, Sir, which you had of me. Ant. S. I think it be, Sir; I deny it not. Ant. E. And you, Sir, for this chain arrested me. Ang. I think I did, Sir; I deny it not. Adr. I sent you money, Sir, to be your bail, By Dromio; but I think he brought it not, Dro. E. No, none by me. Ant. S. This purse of ducats I received from you, Ant. E. These ducats pawn I for my father here. Abb. Renowned duke, vouchsafe to take the pains Το go with us into the abbey here, And here at large discoursed all our fortunes;— The duke, my husband, and my children both, Duke. With all my heart; I'll gossip at this feast. [Exeunt Duke, Abbess, ÆGEON, Courtezan, Second Merchant, ANGELO, and Attendants. Dro. S. Master, shall I fetch your stuff from shipboard? Ant. E. Dromio, what stuff of mine hast thou embark'd? Dro. S. Your goods that lay at host, Sir, in the Centaur. Ant. S. He speaks to me.-I am your master, Come, go with us; we'll look to that anon: [Exeunt ANT. S. and ANT. E., ADR. and Luc. Dro. S. There is a fat friend at your master's house, That kitchen'd me for you to-day at dinner: Dro. E. Methinks you are my glass, and not my brother: I see by you I am a sweet-faced youth. Dro. E. Nay, then, thus: We came into the world like brother and brother; And now let's go hand in hand, not one before another. [Exeunt. |