Shylock, the world thinks, and I think fo too,
That thou but lead'ft this fashion of thy malice
To the laft hour of act; and then 'tis thought,
Thoul't fhew thy mercy and remorfe more ftrange,
Than is thy ftrange apparent cruelty.

And, where thou now exact'ft the penalty,
Which is a pound of this poor merchant's flesh,
Thou wilt not only lose the forfeiture,

But, touch'd with human gentleness and love,
Forgive a moiety of the principal;
Glancing an eye of pity on his loffes,
That have of late fo huddled on his back,

I

Enough to prefs a royal merchant down;
And pluck commiferation of his ftate

From braffy bofoms, and rough hearts of flint;
From ftubborn Turks and Tartars, never train'd
To offices of tender courtefie.

We all expect a gentle answer, Jew.

Shy. I have poffefs'd your Grace of what I purpose.

1 Enough to press a royal merchant down;] We are not to imagine the word royal to be only a ranting founding Epithet. It is ufed with great propriety, and fhews the Poet well acquainted with the hiftory of the People whom he here brings upon the stage. For when the French and Venetians, in the beginning of the thirteenth century, had won Conftantinople; the French, under the emperor Henry, endeavoured to extend their conquefts into the provinces of the Grecian empire on the Terra firma; while the Venetians, who were mafters of the fea, gave liberty to any fubject of the Republic, who would fit out veffels, to make themselves mafters of the ifles of the Archipelago, and other maritime places; and to enjoy their conquefts in fovereignty; only doing homage to the Republic for their feveral principalities. By virtue of this licence, the Sanudo's, the Juftiniani, the Grimaldi, the Summaripo's, and others, all Venetian merchants, erected principalities in feveral places of the Archipelago, (which their defcendants enjoyed for many generations) and thereby became truly and properly royal merchants. Which indeed was the title generally given them all over Europe. Hence, the most eminent of our own merchants (while public fpirit refided amongst them, and before it was aped by faction) were called royal merchants.

And

2

And by our holy Sabbath have I fworn,
To have the due and forfeit of my bond.
If you deny it, let the danger light
Upon your charter, and your city's freedom!
You'll ask me, why I rather chuse to have
A weight of carrion flesh, than to receive
Three thousand ducats? 2 I'll now answer that
By faying 'tis my humour, is it answer'd ?
What if my house be troubled with a rat,
And I be pleas'd to give ten thousand ducats
To have it baned? what, are you answer'd yet?
Some men there are, love not a gaping pig;
Some, that are mad, if they behold a cat;
And others, when the big-pipe fings i' th' nofe,
Cannot contain their urine for affection.

3 Masters of paffion fway it to the mood

Of what it likes, or loaths. Now, for your answer:
As there is no firm reafon to be render'd,
Why he cannot abide a gaping pig;

Why he, a harmless neceffary cat;

Why he, a woollen bag-pipe; but of force

2

fil NOT answer that.

Muft

But fay, it is my bumour, This Few is the ftrangest Fellow. He is asked a queftion; lays he will not answer it ; in the very next line fays, he has anfwered it, and then spends the 19 following lines to justify and explain his anfwer. Who can doubt then, but we fhould read

I'll Now answer that,

BY SAYING 'tis my humour

3. Mafierlefs paffion fways it to the mood] The two old Quarto's and Folio read,

MASTERS OF paffion.

And this is certainly right. He is fpeaking of the power of found over the human affections, and concludes, very naturally, that the mafiers of paffion (for fo he finely calls the musicians) fway the paffions or affections as they pleafe. Alluding to what the ancients tell us of the feats that Timotheus and other muficians worked by the power of mufic. Can any thing be more natural!

4 Why be, a woollen bag-pipe ; ——] This incident Shakespear -] M

VOL II.

1eems

Muft yield to fuch inevitable fhame,
As to offend, himself being offended ;
So can I give no reafon, nor I will not,
More than a lodg'd hate and a certain loathing
I bear Anthonio, that I follow thus

A lofing fuit against him. Are you answer'd?
Baff. This is no answer thou unfeeling man,
T'excufe the current of thy cruelty.

Shy. I am not bound to please thee with my an fwer.

Baff. Do all men kill the thing they do not love? Shy Hates any Man the thing he would not kill? Baff. Ev'ry offence is not a hate at first.

Shy. What, would'st thou have a serpent fting thee twice?

Ant. I pray you, think, you question with a Jew. You may as well go ftand upon the beach, And bid the main flood 'bate his ufual height. You may as well use question with the wolf, 5 Why he hath made the ewe bleat for the lamb.

In

feems to have taken from J. C. Scaliger's Exot. Exercit. against Cardan. A book that our author was well read in, and much indebted to for a great deal of his phyfics: it being then much in vogue, and indeed is excellent, tho' now long fince forgot. his 344 Exercit. Sect. 6. he has thefe words, Narrabo nunc tibi jocofam Sympathiam Reguli Vafconis Equitis. Is dum viveret audito phormingis fono, urinam illico facere cogebatur. And to make this jocular story ftill more ridiculous, Shakespear, I fuppofe, tranflated phorminx by bag pipes. But what I would chiefly obferve from hence is this, that as Scaliger ufes the word Sympathiam which fignifies, and fo he interprets it, communem AFFECTIONEM duabus rebus, so Shakespear tranflates it by AF

FECTION;

Cannot contain their urine for AFFECTION.

Which fhews the truth of the preceding emendation of the text according to the old copies; which have a full ftop at affection, and read, Mafters of paffion.

5 Why he hath made the ewe bleat for the lamb.] i. e. why he hath robb'd her of her offspring. Which, the Oxford Editor not understanding, he hath alter'd the line thus,

When you behold the ere bleat for the lamb. i.. when you bear.

You

You may as well forbid the mountain pines
To wag their high tops, and to make a noise,
When they are fretted with the gufts of heav'n.
You may as well do any thing most hard,

As feek to foften that, (than which what's harder!)
His Jewish heart. Therefore, I do beseech you,
Make no more offers, use no farther means;
But with all brief and plain conveniency
Let me have judgment, and the Jew his will.
Ball. For thy three thousand ducats here is fix.
Shy. If ev'ry ducat in fix thousand ducats
Were in fix parts, and ev'ry part a ducat,
I would not draw them, I would have my bond.
Duke. How fhalt thou hope for mercy, rend'ring
none?

Shy. What judgment fhall I dread, doing no wrong?
You have among you many a purchas'd slave,
Which, like your affes, and your dogs, and mules,
You use in abject and in flavish part,

Because you bought them. Shall I say to you,
Let them be free, marry them to your heirs?
Why sweat they under burdens? let their beds
Be made as foft as yours, and let their palates
Be feafon'd with fuch viands; you will answer,
The flaves are ours.
So do I answer you:
The pound of flesh, which I demand of him,
Is dearly bought, 'tis mine, and I will have it.
If you deny me, fie upon your law!

There is no force in the decrees of Venice:
I ftand for judgment; anfwer; fhall I have it?
Duke. Upon my pow'r I may difmifs this Court,
Unless Bellario, a learned Doctor,

Whom I have fent for to determine this,

Come here to day.

Sal. My lord, here ftays, without,

A meffenger with letters from the Doctor,
New come from Padua.

Duke. Bring us the letters, call the meffenger. Baff. Good cheer, Anthonio; what, man, courage

yet:

The Jew fhall have my flesh, blood, bones, and all, Ere thou fhalt lofe for me one drop of blood.

Ant. I am a tainted weather of the flock, Meeteft for death: the weakest kind of fruit Drops earliest to the ground, and fo let me. You cannot better be employ'd, Ballanio, Than to live ftill, and write mine epitaph.

2

Enter Neriffa, dress'd like a Lawyer's Clerk.

Duke. Came you from Padua, from Bellario?
Ner. From both, my lord: Bellario greets your
Grace.

Baff. Why doft thou whet thy knife fo earnestly?
Shy. To cut the forfeit from that bankrupt there.
Gra. Not on thy foale, but on thy foul, harsh
Jew,

6

Thou mak'ft thy knife keen; for no metal can,
No, not the hangman's ax, bear half the keennefs
Of thy fharp envy. Can no prayers pierce thee?
Shy. No, none that thou haft wit enough to make.
Gra. O be thou damn'd, inexorable dog,

And for thy life let juftice be accus'd!
Thou almoft mak'ft me waver in my faith,
To hold opinion with Pythagoras,

That fouls of animals infufe themselves
Into the trunks of men. Thy currish fpirit

6 Not on thy foale, but on thy foul, harsh Jew,] This loft jingle Mr. Theobald found again; but knew not what to make of it when he had it, as appears by his paraphrafe, Tho' thou thinkeft that thou art whetting thy knife on the foale of thy fhoe, yet it is upon thy foul, thy immortal part. Abfurd! the conceit is, that his foul was fo hard that it had given an edge to his knife.

Govern'd