Stood heir to th' firft. Now, Sir, be judge yourself,

If I in any juft term am affin'd

To love the Moor.

Rod. I would not follow him then.

Iago. O Sir, content you;

I follow him to ferve my turn upon him.
We cannot all be masters, nor all masters
Cannot be truly follow'd. You shall mark
Many a duteous and knee-crooking knave,
That, doting on his own obfequious bondage,
Wears out his time, much like his matter's afs,
For nought but provender; and when he's old, ca
fhier'd;

Whip me fuch honeft knaves. Others there are,
Who, trimm'd in forms and vifages of duty,
Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves;
And, throwing but shows of fervice on their Lords,
Well thrive by them; and when they've lin'd their

coats,

These folks have some soul,

Do themselves homage.
And fuch a one do I profess myself.

It is as fure as you are Rodrigo,

Were I the Moor, I would not be lago.

In following him, I follow but myself,

Heav'n is my judge!-Not I, for love and duty,
But feeming fo, for my peculiar end.

where each fecond Stood heir to th' first. — I read therefore.

Not (as of old) gradation
7. e. it does not go by gradation,
as it did of old. WARBURTON.
Old gradation, is gradation
eftablished by ancient practice.
Where is the difficulty?

If I in any just term am af
fin'd] Afined is the reading

of the third quarto and the first folio. The fecond quarto and all the modern editions have affign'd. The meaning is, Do 1 ftand within any fuch terms of tropinquity or relation to the Moor, as that it is my duty to love him?

9-boneft knaves.-] Knave is here for fervant, but with a mixture of fly contempt.

For

For when my outward action doth demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart
'In compliment extern, 'tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my fleeve,
For daws to peck at. I'm not what I am.

Rod. What a full fortune does the thick-lips owe, If he can carry't thus?

Iago. Call up her father,

Roufe him. Make after him, poifon his delight,
Proclaim him in the ftreets; incenfe her kinfmen;
And though he in a fertile climate dwell,
Plague him with flies; though that his joy be joy,
Yet throw fuch changes of vexation on't,
As it may lofe fome colour.

Rod. Here is her father's houfe, I'll call aloud.
Iago. Do, with like timorous accent, and dire yell,
2 As when, by night and negligence, the fire
Is fpied in populous cities.

In compliment extern,-] In that which I do only for an outward shew of civility.

As when, by night and neg

ligence, the fire

Is SPIED in populous cities.] This is not fenfe, take it which, way you will. If night and negligence relate to Spied, it is abfurd to fay the fire was Spied by negligence. If night and negl gence refer only to the time and occafion, it should then be by night, and thro' negligence. Otherwife the particle by would be made to fignify time applied to one word, and caufe applied to the other. We fhould read therefore, Is SPRED, by which all thefe faults are avoided. But what is of moft weight, the fi

Y 2

militude, thus emended, agrees. belt with the fact it is applied to. Had this notice been given to Brabantio before his daughter ran away and married, it might then indeed have been well enough compared to the alarm given of a fire juft Spied, afioon as it was begun. But being given after the parties were bedded, it was more fitly compared to a fire Spred by night and negli ence, fo as not to be extinguished.

WARBURTON.

The particle is ufed equivecally; the fame liberty is taken by writers more correct.

The wonderful creature! a wò-
man of reafon!
Never grave out of pride, never
gay out of feafon.

Rod.

Rod. What, ho! Brabantio! Signior Brabantio! ho. Iago. Awake! what, ho! Brabantio! ho! Thieves! thieves!

Look to your house, your daughter, and your bags. Thieves! thieves!

Brabantio appears above, at a Window.

Bra. What is the reafon of this terrible fummons? What is the matter there?

Red. Signior, is all your family within?
Iago. Are all doors lock'd?

Bra. Why? Wherefore afk you this?

Iago. Sir, you are robb'd. For shame, put on your
Gown.

Your heart is burst, you have loft half your foul;
Ev'n now, ev'n very now, an old black ram
Is tupping your white ewe.

Arife, arise,

Awake the fnorting citizens with the bell,

Or else the Devil will make a grandfire of you.
Arife, I fay.

Bra. What, have you loft your wits?

Rod. Moft reverend fignior, do you know my voice?
Bra. Not I. What are you?

Rod. My name is Rodorigo.

Bra. The worfer welcome.

I've charg'd thee not to haunt about my doors.
In honeft plainness thou hast heard me fay,
My daughter's not for thee; and now in madnefs,
Being full of fupper and diftemp'ring draughts,
Upon malicious bravery doft thou come

To start my quiet.

Red. Sir, Sir, Sir

Bra. But thou must needs be fure,

My spirit and my place have in their power

To

To make this bitter to thee.

Rod. Patience, good Sir.

Bra. What tell'ft thou me of robbing? This is Venice,

My houfe is not a grange.

Rod. Moft grave Brabantio,

In fimple and pure foul, I come to you.

Iago. Sir, you are one of those that will not ferve God, if the Devil bid you. Because we come to do you fervice, you think we are ruffians. You'll have your daughter cover'd with a Barbary horfe, you'll have your nephews neigh to you; you'll have courfers for coufins, and gennets for germanes.

*

Bra. What profane wretch art thou?

Iago. I am one, Sir, that comes to tell you, your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs.

Bra. Thou art a villain.

lago. You are a senator.

Bra. This thou fhalt answer. I know thee, Rodo

rigo.

Rod. Sir, I will answer any thing. But I befeech

you,

*If't be your pleasure and moft wife confent,

As partly, I find, it is, that your fair daughter,
At this odd even and dull watch o' th' night,
Tranfported with no worse nor better guard,
But with a knape of hire, a Gondelier,
To the grofs clafps of a lafcivious Moor:
If this be known to you, and your allowance,
We then have done you bold and faucy wrongs.

+ What profane wretch art thou?] That is, what wretch of grofs and licentious language ? In that fenfe Shakespeare often uses the word profane.

The lines printed in Italicks

¥ 3

are not in the first edition, but
in the folio of 1623.

3-this odd ev n- -] The
even of night is midnight, the
time when night is divided into
even parts.

But

I

But if you know not this, my manners tell me,
We have your wrong rebuke. Do not believe,
That from the fenfe of all civility

I thus would play and trifle with your reverence.
Your daughter, if you have not giv'n her leave,
I fay again, bath made a grofs revolt;
Tying her duty, beauty, wit, and fortunes
To an extravagant and wheeling franger,
Of here and every where. Straight fatisfy yourself.
If fhe be in her chamber, or your house,
Let loofe on me the juftice of the State
For thus deluding you.

Bra. Strike on the tinder, ho!

Give me a taper. Call up all my people.
This accident is not unlike my Dream,
Belief of it oppreffes me already.
Light! I fay, light!

lago. Farewel; for I must leave you.
It feems not meet, nor wholefome to my place,
To be produc'd, as, if I ftay, I fhall,

Against the Moor. For I do know, the State,
However this may gall him with * fome check,

5

Cannot with fafety caft him. For he's embark'd
With fuch loud reafon to the Cyprus' wars,
Which ev'n now ftand in act, that, for their fouls,
Another of his fadom they have none,

To lead their bufinefs. In which regard,
Tho' I do hate him as I do hell's pains,
Yet, for neceffity of prefent life,

I must fhew out a flag and fign of love:

Which is, indeed,, but fign. That you may furely find him,

Lead to the Sagittary the rais'd fearch;

And there will I be with him.

So, farewel. [Exit.

mis him; rejea him. We fill fay, a caft coat, and a caft ferv

4fome cleck,] Some rebuke. 5-caft him.-] That is, dif- ing man.

SCENE