OTHELLO.

ACT I.

SCENE I.-Venice. A Street. Enter RODERIGO and lago.
Roderigo.

TUSH, never tell me, I take it much unkindly,
That thou, Iago,-who hast had my purse,

As if the strings were thine,-should'st know of this.
Iago. 'Sblood, but you will not hear me :-

If ever I did dream of such a matter,

Abhor me.

Rod. Thou told'st me, thou didst hold him in thy hate. Iago. Despise me, if I do not.

the city,

Three great ones of

In personal suit to make me his lieutenant,
Oft capp'd to him;'-and, by the faith of man,
I know my price, I am worth no worse a place :
But he, as loving his own pride and purposes,
Evades them, with a bombast circumstance,
Horribly stuff 'd with epithets of war;
And, in conclusion, nonsuits

My mediators; for, certes, says he,
I have already chose my officer.
And what was he?

Forsooth, a great arithmetician,

One Michael Cassio, a Florentine,

A fellow almost damn'd in a fair wife ;3
That never set a squadron in the field,
Nor the division of a battle knows

More than a spinster; unless the bookish theoric,
Wherein the toged consuls can propose

As masterly as he mere prattle, without practice,

[1] To cap is to salute by taking off the cap. It is still an academic phrase.

[2] Circumstance here signifies circumlocution. 8] See Illustrations.

REED

M. MASON.

[4] Venice was originally governed by consuls: and consuls seems to have been commonly used for counsellors, as afterwards in this play. By toged perhaps is meant peaceable, in opposition to the warlike qualifications of which he had been speaking. MALONE.

VOL. X.

F

Is all his soldiership. But he, sir, had the election:
And I,-of whom his eyes had seen the proof,
At Rhodes, at Cyprus; and on other grounds
Christian and heathen,―must be be-lee'd and calm'd
By debitor and creditor, this counter-caster ;
He, in good time, must his lieutenant be,

And I, (God bless the mark!) his Moor-ship's ancient. Rod. By heaven, I rather would have been his hang

man.

Iago. But there's no remedy, 'tis the curse of service; Preferment goes by letter, and affection,

Not by the old gradation, where each second

Stood heir to the first. Now, sir, be judge yourself,
Whether I in any just term am affin'd

To love the Moor ??

Rod. I would not follow him then.

Iago. O sir, content you;

I follow him to serve my turn upon him:
We cannot all be masters, nor all masters
Cannot be truly follow'd.

You shall mark

Many a duteous and knee-crooking knave,

That, doating on his own obsequious bondage,
Wears out his time, much like his master's ass,

For nought but provender; and, when he's old, cashier'd;
Whip me such honest knaves: Others there are,
Who, trimm'd in forms and visages of duty,
Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves;
And, throwing but shows of service on their lords,
Do well thrive by them, and, when they have lin❜d their
coats,

Do themselves homage: these fellows have some soul;
And such a one do I profess myself.

For, sir,

It is as sure as you are Roderigo,

Were I the Moor, I would not be lago :

In following him, I follow but myself;

Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
But seeming so, for my peculiar end :

For when my outward action doth demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart

[5] It was anciently the practice to reckon up sums with counters. So in The Winter's Tale, "Fifteen hundred shoru-What comes the wool to?--I cannot do't without counters."

MALONE.

By recommendation from powerful friends.

JOHNSON.

JOHNSON.

The meaning is, Do I stand within any such terms of propinquity or relation

to the Moor, as that it is my duty to love him?

1

In compliment extern, 'tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at: I am not what I am.

Rod. What a full fortune does the thick-lips owe,
If he can carry't thus !

:

Iago. Call up her father, noteles have
Rouse him make after him, poison his delight,
Proclaim him in the streets; incense her kinsmen,
And, though he in a fertile climate dwell,

Plague him with flies: though that his joy be joy,
Yet throw such changes of vexation on't,
As it may lose some colour.

Rod. Here is her father's house; I'll call aloud.
Iago. Do; with like timorous accent, and dire yell,
As when, by night and negligence, the fire

Is spied in populous cities.

Rod. What ho! Brabantio! signior Brabantio, ho! Iago. Awake! what, ho! Brabantio! thieves! thieves ! thieves !

Look to your house, your daughter, and your bags!
Thieves! thieves!

BRABANTIO above, at a window.

Brq. What is the reason of this terrible summons ? What is the matter there?

Rod. Signior, is all your family within ?

lago. Are your doors lock'd?

Bra. Why? wherefore ask you this?

Iago. Zounds, sir, you are robb'd; for shame, put on

your gown ;

Your heart is burst, you have lost half your soul;
Even now, very now, an old black ram

Is tupping your white ewe.. Arise, arise;

Awake the snorting citizens with the bell,

Or else the devil will make a grandsire of you:

Arise, I say.

Bra. What, have you lost your wits?

Rod. Most reverend signior, do you know my voice? Bra. Not I; What are you?

Rod. My name is Roderigo.

Bra. The worse welcome :

I have charg'd thee, not to haunt about my doors.
In honest plainness thou hast heard me say,

My daughter is not for thee; and now, in madness,

[8] In that which I do only for an outward show of civility.

JOHNSON.