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as Malone has proved, and will be evident on comparing the play with the poem which is to be found in the Basil edition, printed by J. J. Tourneisen, in 1802, at the end of the twenty first volume, from which I have taken the original notes of some of the most famous English commentators of our poet.

In forming the present edition, all passages offensive to delicacy, contrary to the principles of education, have been carefully omitted; at the same time all substitutional or additional phrases have been strictly avoided.

I confidently rely on the support of my colleagues by their introduction of this work to their pupils, and respectfully submit it to parents and the heads of families for their approval and patronage.

In conclusion: I have to acknowledge the valuable assistance of Mr. Wrankmore, a distinguished teacher of the English language in this city, in the revision of the proofsheets.

Leipzig.

Dr. Otto Fiebig.

ROMEO AND JULIET.

(1592.)

PERSONS REPRESENTED.

ESCALUS, Prince of Verona.
PARIS, a young Nobleman, Kinsman to
the prince,

MONTAGUE, Heads of two Houses at
CAPULET, variance with each other.
An old Man, Uncle to Capulet.
ROMEO, Son to Montague.
MERCUTIO, Kinsman to the Prince, and
Friend to Romeo.
BENVOLIO, Nephew to Montague, and
Friend to Romeo.

TYBALT, Nephew to Lady Capulet.
FRIAR LAURENCE, a Franciscan.
FRIAR JOHN, of the same Order.
BALTHAZAR, Servant to Romeo.
SAMPSON,

GREGORY, Servants to Capulet.

ABRAM, Servant to Montague.
An Apothecary.
Three Musicians.
Chorus.

Boy, Page to Paris.
PETER, an Officer.

LADY MONTAGUE, Wife to Montague.
LADY CAPULET, Wife to Capulet.
JULIET, Daughter to Capulet.
Nurse to Juliet.

Citizens of Verona; several Men and
Women, relations to both Houses;
Maskers, Guards, Watchmen, and
Attendants.

SCENE, during the greater part of the Play, in Verona; once, in the fifth Act, at Mantua.

PROLOGUE.

Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge1 break to new mutiny,2
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd3 lovers take their life;

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1) Secret enmity, hatred. 3) The stars were supposed to in2) Insurrection and sedition influence fortune. To cross, to councivil society; now applied exclusive- teract, to embarrass. ly to soldiers and seamen.

ROMEO AND JULIET.

1

Whose misadventur'd piteous overthrows1

Do, with their death, bury their parents' strife. 2
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought3 could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffick1 of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss,5 our toil shall strive to mend.

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Enter SAMPSON and GREGORY, armed with Swords and Bucklers. 6 SAM. Gregory, o' my word,' we'll not carry coals. GRE. No, for then we should be colliers."

SAM. I mean, an10 we be in choler, we'll draw. GRE. Ay, while you live, draw your neck out of the collar.

SAM. I strike quickly, being moved.

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GRE. But thou art not quickly moved to strike. SAM. A dog of the house of Montague moves me. GRE. To move, isto stir; and to be valiant, is to stand to it: therefore, if thou art mov'd, thou runn'st away. SAM. A dog of that house shall move me to stand: I will take the wall of any man of Montague's.

GRE. That shows thee a weak slave; for the weakest goes to the wall. The quarrel is between our masters, and us their men.

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employment, like

5) Intransitively, to be wanting, not to succeed.

6) A kind of shield.

7) i.e. on my word.

mit to servile offices; and thence secondarily, we'll not endure injuries.

9) A digger of coal, one who works in a coal mine. Collier was a very ancient term of abuse. Any person, therefore, who would bear to be called collier, was said to carry

coals.

10) An is old instead of if.
11) i. e. to take the upper or most

8) Originally, We will not sub-honourable place. To compete with.

SAM. 'Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant.

GRE. Draw thy tool:1 here comes, two of the house of the Montagues.

Enter ABRAM and BALTHAZAR.

SAM. My naked weapon is out; quarrel, I will back thee. GRE. How? turn thy back, and run?

SAM. Fear me not.

GRE. No, marry: 2 I fear thee!

SAM. Let us take the law of our sides; let them begin. GRE. 1 will frown3 as I pass by; and let them take it as they list.

SAM. Nay, as they dare. I will bite my thumb at them;5. which is a disgrace to them, if they bear it. ABR. Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?

SAM, I do bite my thumb, sir.

ABR. Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?
SAM. Is the law on our side, if I say ay ?6

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. If you do, sir, I am for you; I serve as good a

man as you.

ABR. No better.

SAM. Well, sir.

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Enter BENVOLIO, at a distance.

better; here comes one of my master's

1) Tool, from the French outil, | gers, expressing a fig for you. Nares, any instrument of manual operation, in his Glossary, quotes the following familiarly for sword. passage from the Rules of Civility, 2) An obsolete term of assevera-transl. from the French 1678: 'Tis no tion, derived from the practice of swearing by the Virgin Mary.

3) To express displeasure by contracting the face to wrinkles; to make grimaces.

4) i. e. not only so; not this alone, intimating that something is to be added by way of amplification.

5) This was an insult. The thumb in this action represented a fig, or fico, an act of contempt by placing the thumb between two of the fin

less disrespectful to bite the nail of your thumb, by way of scorn and disdain, and drawing your nail from between your teeth, to tell them you value not this what they can do.

6) i. e. yes, yea, truly, certainly, a word expressing an affirmative answer to a question. This word is always written I, in the old editions of Shakspeare. Thence the negative nay, no.

7) Kin, kind, genus, race, rela

SAM. Yes, better, sir.

ABR. You lie.

SAM. Draw, if swashing blow. 1

you

be men.

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Gregory, remember thy [They fight

BEN. Part, fools; put up your swords; you know not what you do. [Beats down their Swords.

Enter TYBalt.

TYB. What, art thou drawn2 among these heartless hinds? 3

Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death.

BEN. Í 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, 4 coward.

[They fight.

Enter several Partizans of both Houses, who join the Fray;5 then enter

Citizens with Clubs.
7

CIT. Clubs, bills, and partizans! strike! beat them

down!

Down with the Capulets! down with the Montagues!

Enter CAPULET, in his Gown; and LADY Capulet. CAP. What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho!

8

3) Hind, obsolete instead of domestic, servant.

tion; thence kinsman, kinswoman, one
of the same family, one related by
blood. The eyes of the servant
may be directed the way he sees Ty-
balt coming, and in the mean time,
Benvolio, nephew to Montague, en-trial with.
ters on the opposite side.

1) To swash, to make a great or blustering noise. Steevens says, that to swash seems to have meant to be a bully, to be noisily valiant. Barrett says, that "to swash is to make a noise with swords against tergats." In the Southern States of America, swash or swosh (impulse of water flowing with violence) is a name given to a narrow sound or channel of water lying within a sand-bank, or between that and the shore. Many such are found on the shores of the Carolinas.

2) i. e. have you unsheathed your sword etc.

4) i. e. defend yourself. To have at (legitimate, but vulgar) means to assail, to enter into competition, make

5) Fray, combat, contest, quarrel, is used to express any fighting of two or more persons; but the word is now deemed inelegant for affray which the sense seems to refer to the French effrayer, whilst others derive it from fracas, a great crash.

6) In any public affray, the cry was Clubs! Clubs! by way of calling for persons with clubs (heavy sticks) to part the combatants, as they now call Police!

7) A kind of pike or halbert, formerly carried by the English infantry, and afterwards the usual weapon of watchmen.

8) The long sword was the sword

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