Intreat fome Pow'r to change this currifh Jew. Shy. These be the chriftian husbands. I've a daughter; Would any of the ftock of Barrabas Had been her husband, rather than a chriftian! [Afide., We trifle time; I pray thee, purfue fentence. Por. A pound of that fame merchant's flesh is thine, The Court awards it, and the law doth give it. Shy. Moft rightful judge! Por. And you must cut this flesh from off his breast; The law allows it, and the Court awards it. Shy. Moft learned judge! a sentence: come, prepare. One drop of chriftian blood; thy lands and goods Unto the ftate of Venice. Gra. O upright judge! mark, Jew, O learned judge!. Shy. Is that the law? Por. Thyfelf fhalt fee the Act: For as thou urgeft juftice, be affu: 'd, Thou shalt have justice, more than thou defir'ft. Gra. O learned judge! mark, Jew, a learned judge! Shy. I take this offer then, pay the bond thrice, And let the christian go. Baff. Here is the money. Por. The few hall have all justice; foft! no hafte; He fhall have nothing but the penalty. Gra. O few! an upright judge, a learned judge! Por. Therefore prepare thee to cut off the flesh; Shed thou no blood, nor cut thou lefs, nor more, But just a pound of flefh: if thou tak'it more Or less than a juft pound, be't but so much As makes it light or heavy in the fubftance, On the divifion of the twentieth part Of one poor fcruple; nay, if the scale turn. But But in the estimation of a hair, Thou dieft, and all thy goods are confifcate. Por. Why doth the Jew paufe? take the forfeiture. Por. Thou fhalt have nothing but the forfeiture, To be fo taken at thy peril, Jew. Shy. Why then the devil give him good of it! I'll ftay no longer question. Por. Tarry, Jew. The law hath yet another hold on you: It is enacted in the laws of Venice, If it be prov'd against an alien, That by direct, or indirect, attempts The party, 'gainft which he doth contrive, life The danger formerly by me rehears'd. Down, therefore, and beg mercy of the Duke. Gra. Beg, that thou may'ft have leave to hang thyfelf; And yet, thy wealth being forfeit to the ftate, Thou haft not left the value of a cord; Therefore, thou must be hang'd at the ftate's charge. Duke. That thou may'ft fee the diff'rence of our fpirit, I pardon thee thy life before thou ask it: For For half thy wealth, it is Anthonio's Por. Ay, for the ftate; not for Anthonio. Por. What mercy can you render him, Anthonio? Gra. A halter gratis; nothing else, for God's fake. Ant. So please my lord the Duke, (29) and all the Court, To quit the fine for one half of his goods, I am content; fo he will let me have The other half in ufe, to render it Two things provided more, that for this favour The other, that he do record a gift Here in the Court, of all he dies poffefs'd, Duke. He fhall do this, or else I do recant Por. Art thou contented, Jew? what doft thou fay? (29) So please my lord the Duke,] The terms, which Anthonio prefcribes to be comply'd with by the Jew, have been reckon'd intricate and corrupt; and a different regulation has been advis'd: But, if I am not mistaken, they are to be thus understood. The Jew had forfeited his whole fubitance; one moiety thereof to go to the ftate, and the other to the defendant. Anthonio proposes, that the state should be content with fining him only that moiety, which was confifcated to them; that, as to the other, which Anthonio equally might claim to himself, he only defires to hold the benefit, paying intereft for it to the few during his life: and, upon the Jew's demise, to have it immediately vested in his fon and daughter. Nor does Anthonio propele any thing mean and ungenerous in this; he quits that right and property, which the law gave him, in the Jew's fubftance; and (with regard to his own great loffes,) is content to ftand only as a borrower of it, upon the general foot of paying intereft: nor are the fon and daughter robb'd in this; fince, fetting afide Anthonio's claim by the Jew's forfeiture, their pretenfions could not take place, till the Jew's death: and he takes care, their reverfionary right in it should be fecur'd by the Jew's recording a deed of gift to that purpose. Sky Shy. I am content. Por. Clerk, draw a Deed of gift. Shy. I pray you, give me leave to go from hence; I am not well; fend the Deed after me, And I will fign it. Duke. Get thee gone, but do it. Gra. In chrift'ning thou fhalt have two godfathers. Had I been judge, thou should'st have had ten more, (30) To bring thee to the gallows, not the font. [Exit Shylock. Duke. Sir, I intreat you home with me to dinner. Por. I humbly do defire your Grace of pardon; I muft away this night to Padua, And it is meet, I presently set forth. Duke. I'm forry, that your leisure serves you not. Anthonio, gratify this gentleman; For, in my mind, you are much bound to him. [Exit Duke and his train (30) thou should't have had ten more,] 1. e. a jury of twelve men, to condemn thee to be hang'd. So, in Measure for Mcasure», -I not deny, The fcenes of thefe two plays are respectively laid in Venice and Vienna; and yet 'tis obfervable, in both the poet alludes to the cuftom of fentencing by Juries, as in England This is not to be imputed to him as ignorance: The licence of the ftage has allow'd it, not only at home; but likewife the tragic and comic poets of antiquity indulg'd them felves in tranfplanting their own customs to other nations. Æfcbylus, for inftance, in his Choephora, makes EleƐra, who is in Argos, talk of the customs us'd in purifications, and prescrib'd by law, as the scholiaft obferves, at Athens. Τῦτο πρὸς τὸ παρ' Αθηναίοις ἔθα πρὸς Tov 'Abhvnos vómov. Suphocles, in his Laocoon, the scenary of which is laid in Troy, talks of erecting altars, and burning incense before their doors, as was practis'd on joyful occafions at Athens: therein tranfplanting the Arbenian manners, as Harpocratian has noted, to Troy. Μετάγων τὰ ̓Αθηναίων ἤθη εἰς Τροίαν. And fo Αriftophanes, in his Frog, when the fcene is in the infernal regions, makes acus talk of an edict pafs'd in hell for granting artifts a fubfiftance out of the pry taneum. In this, fays the fcholiaft, a cufiom is transferr'd to the lower regions, which was establish'd in Athens. Ταῦτα μεταφέρει από ταῖς εν Αττικῇ ἐθῶν, εἰς τὰ καθ' άλε. A number of infiances more, of this fort, might be amafs'd from the antient ftage-writers. Baf Ba. Moft worthy gentleman! I and my friend Por. He is well paid that is well fatisfy'd; further. Por. You prefs me far, and therefore I will yield. Baff. This ring, good Sir, alas, it is a trifle; Por. I will have nothing elfe but only this, And now, methinks, I have a mind to it. Baff. There's more depends on this, than is the value. The dearest ring in Venice will I give you, And find it out by proclamation; Only for this, I pray you, pardon me. wife. Por. I fee, Sir, you are liberal in offers ; And know how well I have deferv'd the ring, She wou'd not hold out enmity for ever, For |