Plucking the grafs *, to know where fits the wind;
Peering in maps for ports, and piers, and roads;
And every object that might make me fear
Misfortune to my ventures, out of doubt,
Would make me fad.

Sa'anio. My wind, cooling my broth,
Would blow me to an ague, when I thought
What harm a wind too great might do at sea.
I fhould not fee the fandy hour-glafs run,
But I should think of shallows and of flats,
And fee my wealthy Andrew docked in fand,
Vailing her high top lower than her ribs,
To kifs her burial. Should I go to church,
And fee the holy edifice of ftone,

And not bethink me ftrait of dangerous rocks?
Which touching but my gentle veffel's fide,
Would fcatter all the fpices on the ftream,
Enrobe the roaring waters with my
filks;

And, in a word, but even now worth this,

And now worth nothing. Shall I have the thought
To think on this, and shall I lack the thought,
That fuch a thing bechanced would make me fad ?
But tell not me--I know Anthonio

Is fad to think upon his merchandize.

But when he denies that any reflection upon the ftate of his fortune, or that even the paffion of love, has wrought this grave effect upon his fpirits, they then remain quite at a lofs to account farther for it, referring it merely to the peculiarity of his character, or particular complexion of mind; which is defcribed and contrafted with one of an oppofite cast, with admirable humour:

Sclarino. Not in love, neither! Then let's fay, you're fad,
Because you are not merry; and 'twere as eafy
For you to laugh and leap, and fay you're merry,

Because you are not fad. Now, by two-headed Janus,

Nature hath framed ftrange fellows, in her time;

Some that will evermore peep through their eyes,
And laugh, like parrots, at a bag piper;

And others of fuch vinegar afpect,

That they'll not fhew their teeth, in way of smile,
Though Neftor fwear the jeft be laughable.

Gratiano then coming in, and taking notice of the feriousness of Anthonio's afpect, alike imputes it to the fame caufe his other friends had done:

To throw up into the air.

You

You look not well, Signior Anthonio;

You have too much refpect upon the world;
They Jófe it that do buy it with much care.
Believe me, you are marvellously changed.

To which he replies:

I hold the world but as the world, Gratiano,
A ftage where every man must play his part;
And mine a fad one.

Upon this, Gratiano enters into the fame humorous defcription of the different characters of men, as Solarino had done.

Let me play the fool;

With mirth and daughter let old wrinkles come;
And let my liver rather heat with wine,

Than my heart cool with martifying groans.

Why should a man, whose blood is warm within,
Sit like his grandfire cut in alabaster?

Sleep when he wakes, and creep into the jaundice
By being peevish? I tell thee what, Anthonio,
(I love thee, and it is my love that speaks)
There are a fort of men, whofe vifages
Do cream and mantle like a standing pool,
And do a wilful ftillness entertain,
With purpose to be dreft in an opinion
Of wifdom, gravity, profound conceit;
As who fhould fay, I am Sir Oracle,
"And when I ope my lips, let no dog bark !"
O, my Anthonio, I do know of those,
That therefore only are reputed wife,

For faying nothing; who, I'm very fure,

If they should fpeak, would almost damn those ears,
Which hearing them would call their brothers fools".
But fish not with this melancholy bait

For this fool's gudgeon, this opinion,

Another very common character in life is alfo defcribed in the fame fcene; though I think not fairly applicable to the perfon who was capable of making the fpeech above cited:

Baffanio. "Gratiano fpeaks an infinite deal of nothing, more "than any man in all Venice. His reafons are as two grains of "wheat hid in two bushels of chaff; you may seek all day ere you "find them; and when you have them, they are not worth the "fearch."

Alluding to the Scripture text, He that calleth his brother a fool, &c.

In the following paffage of the fame Scene, there is a warmth of affection and generous friendship, fondly and beautifully expreffed.

Baffanio and Anthonio,
Bafanio. To you, Anthonio,

I owe the most in money, and in love;
And from your love I have a warranty
To unburden all my plots and purposes,
How to get clear of all the debts I owe.

Anthonio. I pray you, good Baffanio, let me know it;
And if it fland, as you yourself still do,
Within the eye of honour, be affured,
My purfe, my perfon, my extremelt means
Lye all unlocked to your occafions.

You know me well; and herein fpend but time,
To wind about my love with circumstance;
And, out of doubt, you do me now more wrong,
In making queftion of my uttermost,
Than if you had made waile of all I have.
Then do but fay to me what I fhould do,
That in your knowledge may by me be done,
And I am preft unto it-Therefore, speak.
Thou know'ft that all my fortunes are at fea,
Nor have I money, nor commodity,
To raife a prefent fum; therefore, go forth;
Try what my credit can in Venice de;
That fhall be rack'd, even to the uttermoft,
To furnish thee to Belmont, to fair Portia.

Go prefently inquire, and fo will I,

Where money is; and I no question make,
To have it of my truft, or for my fake.

Again, in the third Scene of Act the Third, the fame noble spirit is carried on.

Portia and Baffanio.

Pertia. Is it your dear friend that is thus in trouble?
Baffanio. The dearest friend to me; the kindest man ;
The best conditioned-an unwearied fpirit
In doing courtefies; and one in whom
The antient Roman honour more appears,
Than any that draws breath in Italy.

Portia. What fum owes he the Jew?
Baffanio. For me, three thousand ducats.
Pertia.

What! no more?

Pay him fix thoufand, and deface the bond;

Double

Double fix thoufand, and then treble that,
Before a friend of this defcription

Shall lofe a hair thro' my Baffanio's fault.

And from the Fifth Scene of the fame Act, another paffage may be quoted, which breathes the fame ftrain.

Portia and Lorenzo.

Lorenzo. Madam, altho' I speak it in your presence,
You have a noble and a true conceit

Of godlike amity; which appears most strongly,
In bearing thus the abfence of your lord.
But if you knew on whom you fhew this honour,
How true a gentleman you fend relief to,
How dear a lover of my lord your husband;
I know, you would be prouder of this work,
Than customary bounty could inforce you.
Partia. I never did repent of doing good,
And shall not now; for in companions
That do converfe and waste the time together,
Whose fouls do bear an equal yoke of love,
There needs must be a like proportion
Of lineaments of manners, and of fpirit;
Which makes me think that this Anthonio,
Being the bofom lover of my lord,
Muft needs be like my lord. If it be fo,
How little is the coft I have bestowed,
In purchafing the femblance of my foul
From out the ftate of hellish cruelty!'
This comes too near the praifing of myself;
Therefore, no more of it.

1

There is a becoming referve and modesty in this laft fentence, which gives an additional beauty to the character of Portia. But I must now return again to the First Act, that I may recover the order of the reflections which are made in this Piece.

SCENE II.

Here the golden mean is well recommended, by hewing the excefs on either fide, to be equally bad:

Portia and Neriffa.

Portia. By my troth, Neriffa, my little body is weary of this great world.

E 4

Nerifa

Neriffa. You would be, fweet madam, if your miferies were in the fame abundance as your good fortunes are. And yet, for aught I fee, they are as fick that furfeit with too much, as they that ftarve with nothing; therefore, it is no mean happiness to be feated in the mean; fuperfluity comes fooner by white hairs, but competency lives longer."

From thence Portia takes occafion to hint at the inefficacy of good counsel towards governing or reftraining our passions:

Portia. Good fentences, and well pronounced.

Neria. They would be better, if well followed.

Pertia. If to do, were as eafy as to know what were good to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men's cottages princes palaces. He is a good divine that follows his own inftructions; I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done, than to be one of the twenty to follow my own teaching. The brain may devise laws for the blood, but a hot temper leaps o'er a cold decree; fuch a hare is madnefs, the youth, to skip o'er the mashes of good counfel, the cripple.

The next paffage that occurs, is a reflection on the cafualties of fortune, which no merit, no industry, no prudence can controul.

Morochius to Portia.

Therefore, I pray you, lead me to the caskets,
To try my fortune. By this fcimitar,
That flew the Sophy, and a Perfian prince,
That won three fields from Sultan Solyman,
I would outstare the fterneft eyes that look,
Ootbrave the heart moft daring to the earth,
Pluck the young fucking cubs from the fhe-bear,
Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey,
To win thee, lady. But, alas the while!
If Hercules and Lichas * play at dice,
Which is the better man, the greater throw
May turn by fortune from the weaker hand-
So is Alcides beaten by his page.

And fo may I, blind Fortune leading me,
Mifs that which one unworthier may attain,
And die with grieving.

Page to Hercules.

2

SCENE