Abr. Do you bite your thumb at us, sir? Sam. [Aside to Gre.] Is the law of our side, if I say ay?

Gre. No.

Sam. No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I bite my thumb, sir.

Gre. Do you quarrel, sir?

Abr. Quarrel, sir! no, sir.

Sam. But if you do, sir, I am for you: I serve as good a man as you.

Abr. No better.

Sam. Well, sir.

Gre. [Aside to Sam.] Say 'better:' here comes one of my master's kinsmen.

Sam. Yes, better, sir.

Abr. You lie.

Sam. Draw, if you be men. Gregory, remember thy swashing blow.

60

[They fight. 70

Enter BENVOLIO.

Ben. Part, fools!

Put up your swords; you know not what you do.

[Beats down their swords.

Enter TYBALT.

Tyb. What, art thou drawn among these heartless hinds?

Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death.

66. one of my master's kinsmen, i.e. Tybalt. Gregory may be supposed to be looking in the direction from which Tybalt comes, with his back to Benvolio. Mr. Daniel's stage direction, Enter at opposite sides, Benvolio and Tibalt,' relieves the otherwise awkward

ambiguity.

a

70. swashing; so Q45. Q2'3 F1 have 'washing,' which Shakespeare may have written; washing blow' is attested in the same sense by Harvey's Plaine Percival, 1589 (Daniel's edition).

73. heartless, timid (with a quibble).

Ben. I do but keep the peace: put up thy sword, Or manage it to part these men with me.

Tyb. What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,

As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:

Have at thee, coward!

[They fight.

Enter several of both houses, who join the fray; then enter Citizens and Peace-officers with clubs.

First Off Clubs, bills, and partisans! strike!

beat them down!

Down with the Capulets! down with the Montagues!

Enter old CAPULET in his gown, and LADY

CAPULET.

Cap. What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho!

La. Cap. A crutch, a crutch! why call you for a sword?

Cap. My sword, I say! Old Montague is come, And flourishes his blade in spite of me.

Enter MONTAGUE and LADY MONTAGUE.

Mon. Thou villain Capulet,-Hold me not, let me go.

La. Mon. Thou shalt not stir one foot to seek a foe.

Enter PRINCE, with Attendants.

Prin. Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace, Profaners of this neighbour-stained steel,

80. Clubs, the common cry raised to part a street quarrel.

80. bills, the usual weapons of watchmen.

80. partisans, halberts.

80

89. neighbour-stained, stained with the blood of fellow-country

men.

Will they not hear? What, ho! you men, you

beasts,

That quench the fire of your pernicious rage
With purple fountains issuing from your veins,
On pain of torture, from those bloody hands
Throw your mistemper'd weapons to the ground,
And hear the sentence of your moved prince.
Three civil brawls, bred of an airy word,
By thee, old Capulet, and Montague,
Have thrice disturb'd the quiet of our streets,
And made Verona's ancient citizens
Cast by their grave beseeming ornaments,
To wield old partisans, in hands as old,

Canker'd with peace, to part your canker'd hate :
If ever you disturb our streets again,

Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace.
For this time, all the rest depart away:

You, Capulet, shall go along with me:
And, Montague, come you this afternoon,
To know our further pleasure in this case,
To old Free-town, our common judgement-place.
Once more, on pain of death, all men depart.

[Exeunt all but Montague, Lady Mon-
tague, and Benvolio.

Mon. Who set this ancient quarrel new abroach? Speak, nephew, were you by when it began?

Ben. Here were the servants of your adversary,
And yours, close fighting ere I did approach:
I drew to part them: in the instant came
The fiery Tybalt, with his sword prepared;
Which, as he breathed defiance to my ears,
He swung about his head and cut the winds,
Who, nothing hurt withal, hiss'd him in scorn:

94. mistemper'd, tempered, hardened, to an ill end.

109. Free-town, Villa Franca'

in the Ital. original and in Painter; already rendered thus by Brooke.

While we were interchanging thrusts and blows,
Came more and more, and fought on part and part,
Till the prince came, who parted either part.

La. Mon. O, where is Romeo? saw you him to-day?

Right glad I am he was not at this fray.

Ben. Madam, an hour before the worshipp'd sun Peer'd forth the golden window of the east, A troubled mind drave me to walk abroad; Where, underneath the grove of sycamore That westward rooteth from the city's side, So early walking did I see your son: Towards him I made; but he was ware of me And stole into the covert of the wood :

I, measuring his affections by my own,

Which then most sought where most might not

be found

Being one too many by my weary self,

Pursued my humour not pursuing his,

And gladly shunn'd who gladly fled from me.

Mon. Many a morning hath he there been seen, With tears augmenting the fresh morning's dew, Adding to clouds more clouds with his deep sighs; But all so soon as the all-cheering sun Should in the furthest east begin to draw The shady curtains from Aurora's bed, Away from light steals home my heavy son, And private in his chamber pens himself, Shuts up his windows, locks fair daylight out And makes himself an artificial night: Black and portentous must this humour prove, 127. drave. Q2 has drive (i. e. driv), a current form of the past tense, which Shakespeare may have written.

133. affections, inclinations.

120

130

140

134. Benvolio sought the least frequented places. This verse, given in Q, is replaced in most modern editions by one from Q: 'That most are busied when they're most alone.'

Unless good counsel may the cause remove.
Ben. My noble uncle, do you know the cause?
Mon. I neither know it nor can learn of him.
Ben. Have you importuned him by any means?
Mon. Both by myself and many other friends:
But he, his own affections' counsellor,
Is to himself I will not say how true-
But to himself so secret and so close,
So far from sounding and discovery,
As is the bud bit with an envious worm,

Ere he can spread his sweet leaves to the air,
Or dedicate his beauty to the sun.

150

Could we but learn from whence his sorrows grow, 160 We would as willingly give cure as know.

Enter ROMEO.

Ben. See, where he comes: so please you step aside,

I'll know his grievance, or be much denied.

Mon. I would thou wert so happy by thy stay,
To hear true shrift. Come, madam, let's away.
[Exeunt Montague and Lady.

Ben. Good morrow, cousin.
Rom.

Ben. But new struck nine.

Rom.

Is the day so young?

Ay me! sad hours seem long.

Was that my father that went hence so fast?

Ben. It was. What sadness lengthens Romeo's

hours ?

Rom. Not having that which, having, makes

them short.

Ben. In love?

Rom. Out

170

Ben. Of love?

Rom. Out of her favour, where I am in love.

159. sun; Theobald's emendation of Qq Ff 'same.'