Ant. S. Where Spain?

Dro. S. 'Faith, I saw it not; but I felt it hot in her breath.

Ant. S. Where America, the Indies?

Dro. S. O, sir, upon her nose, all o'er embellish'd with rubies, carbuncles, sapphires, declining their rich aspect to the hot breath of Spain; who sent whole armadas of carracks 18 to be ballast at her nose.

Ant. S. Where stood Belgia, the Netherlands?

Dro. S. O, sir, I did not look so low. To conclude, this drudge, or diviner, laid claim to me; call'd me Dromio; swore, I was assur'd19 to her; told me what privy marks I had about me, as the mark of my shoulder, the mole in my neck, the great wart on my left arm, that I, amazed, ran from her as a witch: and, I think, if my breast had not been made of faith 20, and my heart of steel, she had transform'd me to a curtail-dog, and made me turn i' the wheel 21.

Ant. S. Go, hie thee presently, post to the road; And if the wind blow any way from shore, I will not harbour in this town to-night. If any bark put forth, come to the mart, Where I will walk, till thou return to me. If every one knows us, and we know none, 'Tis time, I think, to trudge, pack, and be gone.

Dro. S. As from a bear a man would run for life, So fly I from her that would be my wife. [Exit. Ant. S. There's none but witches do inhabit here; And therefore 'tis high time that I were hence.

18 Carracks, large ships of burthen; caraca, Span. Ballast is merely a contraction of balassed; to balase being the old orthography: as we write drest for dressed, embost for embossed, &c. 19 i. e. affianced.

20 Alluding to the popular belief that a great share of faith was a protection from witchcraft.

21 A turnspit.

She that doth call me husband, even my soul
Doth for a wife abhor: but her fair sister,
Possess'd with such a gentle sovereign grace,
Of such enchanting presence and discourse,
Hath almost made me traitor to myself:
But, lest myself be guilty to self-wrong,
I'll stop my ears against the mermaid's song.
Enter ANGElo.

Ang. Master Antipholus ?

22

Ant. S. Ay, that's my name.

Ang. I know it well, sir: Lo, here is the chain; I thought to have ta'en you at the Porcupine 23: The chain unfinish'd made me stay thus long.

Ant. S. What is your will, that I shall do with this? Ang. What, please yourself, sir; I have made it for you.

Ant. S. Made it for me, sir! I bespoke it not. Ang. Not once, nor twice, but twenty times you have:

Go home with it, and please your wife withal;
And soon at supper-time I'll visit you,

And then receive my money for the chain.

Ant. S. I pray you, sir, receive the money now, For fear you ne'er see chain, nor money, more.

22 Pope, not understanding sufficiently the phraseology of Shakspeare, altered this to guilty of self-wrong. But guilty to was the construction of that age. So in the Winter's Tale :'But as the unthought of accident is guilty

To what we wildly do.'

23 Porcupine throughout the old editions of these plays is written porpentine. I find it written porpyn in an old phrase book, called Hormanni Vulgaria, 1519, thus: Porpyns have longer prickels than Yrchins.' But it is also spelt thus in Huloet's Dictionary, 1552. Of the later dictionaries, BARET has it porcupine, and COOPER porkepyne. As porpyn, from the abbreviated sound of porc-espine, was the old name, it is probable that in the popular language of the time, porpentine was used for porcupine.

Ang. You are a merry man, sir; fare

you well.
[Exit.

Ant. S. What I should think of this, I cannot tell; But this I think, there's no man is so vain, That would refuse so fair an offer'd chain. I see, a man here needs not live by shifts, When in the streets he meets such golden gifts. I'll to the mart, and there for Dromio stay; If any ship put out, then straight away.

[Exit.

ACT IV.

SCENE I. The same.

Enter a Merchant, ANGELO, and an Officer. Mer. You know, since pentecost the sum is due, And since I have not much impórtun'd you;

Nor now I had not, but that I am bound
To Persia, and want gilders for my voyage:
Therefore make present satisfaction,

Or I'll attach you by this officer.

Ang. Even just the sum, that I do owe to you, Is growing1 to me by Antipholus :

And, in the instant that I met with you,
He had of me a chain; at five o'clock,
I shall receive the money for the same:
Pleaseth you walk with me down to his house,
I will discharge my bond, and thank you too.

Enter ANTIPHOLUS of Ephesus, and DROMIO of
Ephesus from the Courtezan's.

Off. That labour may you save; see where he

comes.

Ant. E. While I go to the goldsmith's house, go

thou

1 i. e. accruing.

And buy a rope's end; that will I bestow
Among my wife and her confederates,
For locking me out of my doors by day.-
But soft, I see the goldsmith:-get thee gone:
Buy thou a rope, and bring it home to me.
Dro. E. I buy a thousand pound a year! I buy
rope!
[Exit DROMIO.
Ant. E. A man is well holp up, that trusts to you.
I promised your presence, and the chain;
But neither chain, nor goldsmith, came to me:
Belike, you thought our love would last too long,
If it were chain'd together; and therefore came not.
Ang. Saving your merry humour, here's the note,
How much your chain weighs to the utmost carrat;
The fineness of the gold, and chargeful fashion;
Which doth amount to three odd ducats more
Than I stand debted to this gentleman;
I pray you, see him presently discharg❜d,
For he is bound to sea, and stays but for it.
Ant. E. I am not furnish'd with the present money;
Besides, I have some business in the town:
Good signior, take the stranger to my house,
And with you take the chain, and bid my wife
Disburse the sum on the receipt thereof;
Perchance, I will3 be there as soon as you.
Ang. Then you will bring the chain to her your-
self?

Ant. E. No! bear it with you, lest I come not time enough.

Ang. Well, sir, I will: Have you the chain about you?

Ant. E. An if I have not, sir, I hope you have: Or else you may return without your money.

2 The old copy reads their.

3 I will for I shall is a Scotticism; but it is not unfrequent in old writers on this side of the Tweed.

VOL. IV.

Ang. Nay, come, I pray you, sir, give me the

chain;

Both wind and tide stays for this gentleman,

And I, to blame, have held him here too long.
Ant. E. Good lord, you use this dalliance, to

excuse

Your breach of promise to the Porcupine:
I should have chid you for not bringing it.
But like a shrew, you first begin to brawl.
Mer. The hour steals on; I pray you, sir, despatch.
Ang. You hear, how he impórtunes me; the chain
Ant. E. Why give it to my wife, and fetch your

money.

Ang. Come, come, you know, I gave it you even

now;

Either send the chain, or send by me some token. Ant. E. Fie! now you run this humour out of

breath:

Come, where's the chain? I pray you let me see it.
Mer. My business cannot brook this dalliance;
Good sir, say, whe'r you'll answer me, or no;
If not, I'll leave him to the officer.

Ant. E. I answer you! What should I answer you?
Ang. The
money, that you owe me for the chain.

4 Malone has a very long note on this passage, in which he says it was not Angelo's meaning, that Antipholus of Ephesus should send a jewel or other token by him, but that Antipholus should send him with a verbal token to his wife, by which it might be ascertained that he came from Antipholus; and that she might safely pay the price of the chain." In the name of common sense, what does this prove?—Can it signify whether the token Angelo wishes Antipholus to send by him was to be verbal or material? Tokens were common in Shakspeare's time of many kinds; there were tavern tokens, which were counters of lead or leather. There were written tokens or billes, as they were then called, 'given to men by which they might receive a certaine sum of money,' &c. Such a one Angelo probably requires.