Ford. Pray you go, Mr. Page.

Eva. I pray you now, remembrance to-morrow ou the lousy knave, mine hoft.

Caius. Dat is good, by gar, with all my heart.

Eva. A loufy knave, to have his gibes, and his mockeries.

Exeunt. SCENE changes to Page's House.

Enter Fenton and Mistress Ann Page. Fent. T See, I cannot get thy father's love ; "I

Therefore no more turn me to him, sweet Nax. Ann. Alas ! how then ?

Fent. Why, thou must be thyself.
He doth object, I am too great of birth ;
And that my ftate being gall’d with my expence,
I seek to heal it only by his wealth.
Besides these, other bars he lays before me,
My riots paft, my wild societies :
And tells me, 'tis a thing imposible
1 fhould love thee, but as a property.

Ang. May be, he tells you true.

Fent. No, heav'n so speed me in my time to come!
Albeit, I will confess, thy father's wealth
Was the first motive that I woo'd thee, Ann :
Yet wooing thee, I found thee of more value
Than ftamps in gold, or sums in feaked bags;
And 'tis the very riches of thyself
That now I aim at.

Ann. Gentle Mr. Fenton,
Yet seek my father's love: ftill seek it, Sir ;
If opportunity and humbleft fuit (19)
Cannot attain it, why then - hark you hither.

[Fenton and Mrs. Ann go apart. (19) If opportunity and humblest suit] Ds. Thirlby imagines, that our Author with more propriety wrote;

If in porturity and humblest suit I have not veutur'd to di urb the text, because, tho' an equal exact. nefs be not maintain') in the expreffio:), it may mean, “ If the frequent appor initie. you find of follicit my ther, and your recrets ev him, cannot get him over to your party, &c.

Enter

Enter Shallow, Slender, and Mistress Quickly. Sbal. Break their talk, Mistress Quickly; my kinsman shall speak for himself.

Slen. I'll make a shaft or a bolt on't ; 'd'slid, 'tis but' venturing.

Sbal. Be not dismay'd.

Slen. No, the shall not dismay me : I care not for that, but that I am affeard.

Quick. Hark ye, Mr. Slender, would speak a word with

you. Ann. I come to him.- This is my father's choice. O, what a world of vile ill-favour'd faults Look handsome in three hundred pounds a year!

Quic. And how does good master Fenton ? pray you, a word with you.

Shal. She's coming; to her, coz. O boy, thou hadit a father!

Slen. I had a father, Mrs. Ann; my uncle can tell you good jefts of him. Pray you, uncle, tell Mrs. Ann the jest, how my father stole two geese out of a pen, good uncle.

Shal. Mistress Ann, my cousin loves you.

Slen. Ay, that I do, as well as I love any woman in Gloucestershire.

Shal. He will maintain you like a gentlewoman.

Slen. Ay, that I will; come cut and long-tail, under the degree of a squire.

Shal. He will make you' a hundred and fifty pounds jointure.

Ann, Good master Shallow, let him woo for himself. Shal. Marry, I thank you for it; I thank you

for that. Good comforts the calls you, coz : I'll leave you.

Ann. Now, master Slender.
Slen. Now, good mistress Ann.
Ann. What is your will ?
Slen. My will ? od's-heart-lings, that's a pretty jest,

N 3

indeed,

indeed, I ne'er made my will yet, I thank heav'n ; I am not such a sickly creature, I give heav'n praise.

Ann. I mean, Mr. Slender, what would you with me ?

Slen. Truly, for my own part, I would little or nothing with you; your father and my uncle have made motions; if it be my luck, so; if not, happy man be his dole! they can tell you how things go, better than I can; you may

alk
your

father ; here he comes.
Enter Page, and Mistress Page.
Page. Now, master Slender : love him, daughter Ann.
-Why how now? what does master Fenton here?
You wrong me, Sir, thus ftill to haunt my house :
I told you, Sir, my daughter is disposed of.

Fent. Nay, master Page, be not impatient.
Mrs. Page. Good master Fenton, come not to my

child. Page. She is no match for you. Fent. Sir, will you hear me?

Page. No, good master Fenton.
Come, master Shallow; come, son Slender, in.
Knowing my mind, you wrong me, master Fenton.

[Exeunt Page, Shallow, and Slender. Quic. Speak to mistress Page.

Fent. Good miftress Page, for that I love your daughter In such a righteous fathion as I do, Perforce, against all checks, rebukes, and manners, I must advance the colours of my love, And not retire. Let me have your good will. Ann. Good mother, do not marry me to yon

fool. Mrs. Page. I mean it not, I seek you a better hus. band.

Quic. That's my master, master Doctor

Ann. Alas, I had rather be fet quick i'th' earth,
And bowld to death with turneps.
Mrs. Page. Come, trouble not yourself, good master

Fenton.
I will not be your

friend nor enemy :
My daughter will I question how she loves you,

And

1

And as I find her, so am I affected.
'Till then, farewel, Sir; she must needs go in,
Her father will be angry. [Exe. Mrs. Page and Ann.

Fent. Farewel, gentle mistress; farewel, Nan.

Quic. This is my doing now. Nay, said I, will you caft away your child on a fool, and a physician ? look on master Fenton ; this is my doing.

Fent. I thank thee ; and I pray thee, once to-night Give my sweet Nan this ring: there's for thy pains.

[Exit. Quic. Now heav'n send thee good fortune! A kind heart he hath; a woman would run through fire and water for such a kind heart. But yet, I would my maiter had mistress Ann, or I would Mr. Slender had. her; or, in sooth, I would Mr. Fenton had her. I will do what I can for them all three, for so I have promiš'd : and I'll be as good as my word, but fpeciously for Mr. Fenton. Well, I must of another errand to Sir John Falstaff from my two mistresses ; what a beast am I to llack it?

[Exit.

SCENE, changes to the Garter-Inn.

Enter Falstaff and Bardolph.
Fal.

, I .

Bard. Here, Sir. Fal. Go fetch me a quart of fack, put a toast in't. [Exit Bard.] Have I liv’d to be carry'd in a basket, like a barrow of butchers offal, and to be thrown into the Thames? well, if I be fery'd such another trick, l'll have

my brains ta'en out and butter'd, and give them to a dog for a new-year's gift. The rogues flighted me into the river, with as little remorse (20) as they

would

(20) As they would have drown'd a blind bitch's puppies.] I have ventur'd to transpose the adjective here, against the authority of the printed copies. I know, in horfes, a colc from a blind ftallion loses. much of the value it might otherwise have; but are puppies ever drown's the sooner, for coming from a blind bitch? Two other para sages in our Author countenance the transposition I have made.

N 4

Launces

would have drown'd a bitch's blind puppies, fifteen i'th' litter ; and you may know, by my size, that I bave a kind of alacrity in finking: if the bottom were as deep as hell, I thould down. I had been drown'd, but that the shore was shelvy and shallow; a death that I abhor; for the water swells a man; and what a thing hould I have been, when I had been swell'd? I thould bave been a mountain of mummy.

Enter Bardolph. Now, is the fack brew'd ?

Bard. Here's Mrs. Quickly, Sir, to speak with you.

Fal. Come, let me pour in some fack to the Thameswater; for my belly's as cold as if I had swallow'd snow-balls, for pills to cool the reins. Call her in. Bard. Come in woman.

Enter Mistress Quickly. Quis. By your leave : I cry you mercy. Give your worship

good morrow. Fal. Take away these challices : go brew me a pottle of fack finely.

Bard. With eggs, Sir ?

Fal. Simple of itself: I'll no pullet-sperm in my brewage. How now?

Quic. Marry, Sir, I come to your worship from miltress Ford.

Fal. Mistress Ford? I have had Ford enough ; I was thrown into the Ford ; I have my belly full of Ford.

Quic. Alas the day! good heart, that was not her fault: she does so take on with her men ; they mistook their erection,

Fal. So did I mine, to build on a foolish woman's promise.

Launci, in 2 Gent. of Verona.

One, that I sav'd from drowning, when three or four of his blind brothers and fifters went to it.

And, lago, in Orbeilo : Come, be man; drown self? drown cats and blind puppies.