Lor. SCENE V. Belmont. Enter Portia, Nerissa, Lorenzo, Jessica, and Belthazar. MADAM, I ADAM, although I speak it in your prefence, Of godlike amity, which appears strongly Por. I never did repent of doing good, Until her husband and my lord's return. There is a monastery two miles off, The which my love and fome neceffity Lor. Madam, with all my heart; Por. My people do already know my mind, And will acknowledge you and Feffica So fare you well till we shall meet again. Lor. Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you! Jes. I wish your ladyship all heart's content. Por. I thank you for your wish, and am well pleas'd To wish it back on you: fare you well, Jeffica. [Exe. Jef. & Lor. Now, Balthazar, As I have ever found thee honeft, true, So let me find thee still: take this fame letter, And use thou all th' endeavour of a man, In speed to Padua; see thou render this Into my cousin's hand, doctor Bellario; And, look, what notes and garments he doth give thee, Bring them, I pray thee, with imagin'd speed Unto the traject, to the common ferry Which trades to Venice: waste no time in words, But get thee gone; I shall be there before thee. Bal. Madam, I go with all convenient fpeed. Por. Come on, Neriffa; I have work in hand That you yet know not of: we'll fee our husbands Before they think of us. [Exit. Ner. Shall they fee us? Por. They shall, Nerissa; but in such a habit, That they shall think we are accomplished With what we lack. I'll hold thee any wager, I'll prove the prettier fellow of the two, And wear my dagger with the braver grace; And speak, between the change of man and boy, With a reed voice; and turn two mincing steps Into a manly ftride; and speak of frays Like a fine bragging youth; and tell quaint lies, Ner. Shall we turn to men? Por. Fie! what a question's that, SCENE VI. Enter Launcelot, and Jessica. [Exeunt. Laun. Yes, truly: for, look you, the fins of the father are to be lay'd upon the children; therefore, I promise you, I fear you. I was always plain with you; and so now I speak my agitation of the matter: therefore be of good cheer; for, truly, I think, you are damn'd: there is but one hope in it that can do you any good; and that is but a kind of bastard-hope neither. Jes. And what hope is that, I pray thee? Laun. Marry, you may partly hope that your father got you not, that you are not the Jew's daughter. VOL. II. H Fes. Jes. That were a kind of bastard-hope, indeed: so the fins of my mother should be visited upon me. Laun. Truly, then, I fear, you are damn'd both by father and mother: thus when you shun Scylla, your father, you fall into Charibdis, your mother: well, you are gone both ways. Jes. I shall be saved by my husband; he hath made me a christian. Laun. Truly, the more to blame he; we were christians enough before, e'en as many as could well live one by another: this making of chriftians will raise the price of hogs; if we grow all to be porkeaters, we shall not shortly have a rasher on the coals for money. Enter Lorenzo. Jes. I'll tell my husband, Launcelot, what you say: here he comes. Lor. I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelot, if you thus get my wife into corners. Jes. Nay, you need not fear us, Lorenzo; Launcelot and I are out: he tells me flatly, there is no mercy for me in heav'n, because I am a Jew's daughter: and he says, you are no good member of the commonwealth; for, in converting Jews to chriftians, you raise the price of pork. Lor. I shall answer that better to the commonwealth than you can the getting up of the negro's belly: the Moor is with child by you, Launcelot. Laun. It is much that the Moor should be more than reason: but if she be less than an honest woman, she is, indeed, more than I took her for. Lor. How every fool can play upon a word! I think, the best grace of wit will shortly turn into filence; and discourse grow commendable in none but parrots. Go in, firrah, bid them prepare for dinner. Laun. That is done, fir; they have all stomachs. Lor. Good lord, what a witsnapper are you! then bid them prepare dinner. Laun. That is done too, fir; only cover is the word. Laun. Laun. Not so, fir, neither; I know my duty. Lor. Yet more quarrelling with occafion! wilt thou show the whole wealth of thy wit in an instant? I pray thee, understand a plain man in his plain meaning: go to thy fellows, bid them cover the table, serve in the meat, and we will come in to dinner. Laun. For the table, fir, it shall be serv'd in; for the meat, fir, it shall be covered; for your coming in to dinner, fir, why, let it be as humours and conceits shall govern. [Exit Laun. Lor. O dear difcretion, how his words are suited! The fool hath planted in his memory In reason he should never come to heav'n. Why, if two gods should play some heav'nly match, Lor. Even such a husband Hast thou of me, as she is for a wife. Jes. Nay, but ask my opinion too of that. Lor. I will anon: first, let us go to dinner. Jes. Well, I'll fet you forth. [Exeunt. H 2 ACT |