d

MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR

BY

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE.

From the Text of the Rev. Alexander Dyce's

Second Edition.

LEIPZIG

BERNHARD TAUCHNITZ

1868.

THE

MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR.

NYM,

PACE;}

DRAMATIS PERSONÆ. SIR JOHN FALSTAFF.

BARDOLPH, FENTON, a young gentleman. PISTOL, followers of Falstaff. SHALLOW, a country justice. SLENDER, cousin to Shallow. FORD, two gentlemen dwelling SIMPLE, servant to Slender.

ROBIN, page to Falstaff. at Windsor, WILLIAM PAGE, a boy, son to RUGBY, servant to Doctor Caius.

Page.
SIR HUGH EVANS, a Welsh MISTRESS FORD.

MISTRESS PAGE.
parson.
DOCTOR CAIUS, a French physi- ANNE PAGE, her daughter.
cian.

MISTRESS QUICKLY, servant to Host of the Garter Inn.

Doctor Caius.
Servants to Page, Ford, &c.
SCENE Windsor, and the neighbourhood.

ACT I. SCENE I. Windsor. Before Page’s house. Enter JUSTICE SHALLOW, SLENDER, and Sir Hugh Evans.

Shal. Sir Hugh, persuade me not; I will make a StarChamber matter of it: if he were twenty Sir John Falstaffs, he shall not abuse Robert Shallow, esquire.

Slen. In the county of Gloster, justice of peaoe and coram.
Shal. Ay, cousin Slender, and cust-alorum.
Slen. Ay, and rato-lorum too; and a gentleman born,

1

2

pow

a

master parson; who writes himself armigero, in any bill, warrant, quittance, or obligation, armigero.

Shal. Ay, that I do; and have done any time these three hundred years.

Slen. All his successors gone before him have done't; and

all his ancestors that come after him may: they may give the tragsges for a dozen white luces in their coat.

Shal. It is an old coat.

Evans. The dozen white louses do become an old coat well; it agrees well, passant; it is a familiar beast to man, and signifies love.

Shal. The luce is the fresh fish; the salt fish is an old coat.

Slen. I may quarter, coz?
Shal. You may, by marrying.

Evans. It is marring indeed, if he quarter it.
FAV

Shal. Not a whit.

Evans. Yes, py'r lady; if he has a quarter of your coat, there is but three skirts for yourself, in my simple conjectures: but that is all one. If Sir John Falstaff have committed disparagements unto you, I am of the church, and will be glad to do my benevolence to make atonements and compremises between you.

Shal. The Council shall hear it; it is a riot.

Evans. It is not meet the Council hear a riot; there is no fear of Got in a riot: the Council, look you, shall desire to hear the fear of Got, and not to hear a riot; take your viza. ments in that.

Shal. Ha! o' my life, if I were young again, the sword should end it.

Evans. It is petter that friends is the sword, and end it: and there is also another device in my prain, which peradventure prings goot discretions with it: there is Anne Page, which is daughter to Master George Page, which is pretty virginity.

Slen. Mistress Anne Page! She has brown hair, and speaks small like a woman.