Luc. Fye, brother! how the world is chang'd with When were you wont to use my fifter thus? [you; She fent for you by Dromio home to dinner. Ant. By Dromio?

S. Dro. By me?

Adr. By thee; and thus thou didst return from That he did buffet thee, and, in his blows,, [him,Deny'd my houfe for his, me for his wife.

Ant. Did you converfe, fir, with this gentlewoman? What is the course and drift of your compact?

S. Dro. I, fir? I never faw her 'till this time. Ant. Villain, thou lieft; for even her very words Didft thou deliver to me on the mart.

S. Dro. I never fpake with her in all my life. Ant. How can the thus then call us by our names, Unless it be by infpiration?

Adr. How ill agrees it with your gravity,
To counterfeit thus grofsly with your flave,
Abetting him to thwart me in my mood?
Be it my wrong, you are from me exempt,
But wrong not that wrong with a more contempt.
Come, I will faften on this fleeve of thine:
Thou art an elm, my husband, I a vine;
Whofe weaknefs, marry'd to thy ftronger ftate,
Makes me with thy ftrength to communicate:
If ought poffefs thee from me, it is drofs,
Ufurping ivy, briar, or idle mofs;

Who, all for want of pruning, with intrufion
Infect thy fap, and live on thy confufion.

Ant. To me the speaks; the moves me for her What, was I marry'd to her in my dream? [theme: Or fleep I now, and think I hear all this?

What error drives our eyes and ears amiss?
Until I know this fure uncertainty,

I'll entertain the favour'd fallacy.

Luc. Dromio, gobid the fervants fpread for dinner S. Dro. Oh, for my beads! I cross me for a finner This is the fairy land;-oh, spight of spights !— We talk with goblins, owls, and elvish sprights; If we obey them not, this will ensue,

They'll fuck our breath, and pinchus black and blue Luc. Why prat'ft thou to thyfelf, and answer'

not?

Dromio, thou drone, thou fnail, thou flug, thou fot

S. Dro. I am transformed, master, am I not? Ant. I think, thou art, in mind, and fo am I. S. Dro. Nay, master, both in mind, and in my Ant. Thou haft thine own form. [fhape

S. Dro. No, I am an ape.

Luc. If thou art chang'd to ought, 'tis to an afs S. Dro. 'Tis true; fhe rides me, and I long for grafs.

'Tis fo, I am an ass; else it could never be, But I fhould know her as well as fhe knows me.

Adr. Come, come, no longer will I be a fool, Το put the finger in the eye and weep,

Whilft man, and mafter, laugh my woes to fcorn.---
Come, fir, to dinner; Dromio, keep the gate:
Husband, I'll dine above with you to-day,
And fhrive you of a thoufand idle pranks :
Sirrah, if any afk you for your master,

Say, he dines forth, and let no creature enter.-
Come, fifter: Dromio, play the porter well.

Ant. Am I in earth, in heaven, or in hell?
Sleeping or waking? mad, or well advis'd?
Known unto thefe, and to myfelf difguis'd:
I'll fay as they fay, and perfever so,
And in this mist at all adventures go.

S. Dra

S. Dro. Mafter, fhall I be porter at the gate? Adr. Ay, let none enter, left I break your pate. Luc. Come, come, Antipholis, we dine too late. [Exeunt.

ACT III.

SCENE I. The Street before ANTIPHOLIS's Houfe. Enter ANTIPHOLIS of Ephefus, DROMIO of Ephefus, ANGELO, and BALTHAZAR.

E. Ant.

GOOD fignior Angelo, you must excufe us all ;
My wife is threwith when I keep not hours:
Say, that I linger'd with you at your shop,
To fee the making of her carkanet,

And that to-morrow you will bring it home.
But here's a villain, that would face me down
He met me on the mart; and that I beat him,
And charg'd him with a thousand marks in gold;
And that I did deny my wife and houfe:-
Thou drunkard, thou, what didft thou mean by this?
E. Dro. Say what you will, fir, but I know
what I know:

That

you beat me at the mart, I have your hand to fhow:

If the fkin were parchment, and the blows you gave were ink,

Your own hand-writing would tell you what I think. E. Ant. I think, thou art an ass.

E. Dro. Marry, so it doth appear

By the wrongs I fuffer, and the blows I bear. I fhould kick, being kick'd; and being at that pafs, You would keep from my heels, and beware of an afs.

E. Ant. You are fad, fignior Balthazar: Pray god, our cheer

May answer my good-will, and your good wel come here.

Bal. I hold your dainties cheap, fir, and your welcome dear.

E. Ant. Ah, fignior Balthazar, either at flesh, or fish,

A table-full of welcome makes fearce one dainty

difh.

Bal. Good meat, fir, is common, that every churl affords.

E. Art And welcome more common; for that's nothing but words.

Bal. Small cheer, and great welcome, makes a merry feaft.

E. Ant. Ay, to a niggardly hoft, and more fparing guest:

But though my cates be mean, take them in good

part;

Better cheer may you have, but not with better heart. But, foft; my door is lock'd; Go bid them let us in. E. Dro. Maud, Bridget, Marian, Cicely, Gillian, Ginn!

S. Dro. [within.] Mome, malt-horse, capon, coxcomb, idiot, patch!

Either

get thee from the door, or fit down at the hatch:

Doft thou conjure for wenches, that thou call'dft

for fuch ftore,

When

When one is one too many? go get thee from the

door.

E. Dro. What patch has made our porter? my mafter stays in the street.

S. Dro. Let him walk from whence he came,

left he catch cold on's feet.

E. Ant. Who talks within there? ho, open the door. S. Dro. Right, fir, I'll tell you when, an you'll tell me wherefore.

E. Ant. Wherefore? for my dinner; I have not din'd to-day.

S. Dro. Nor to-day here you must not; come again, when you may.

E. Ant. What art thou, that keep'ft me out from the houfe I owe?

S. Dro. The porter for this time, fir, and my name is Dromio.

E. Dro. O villain, thou haft ftolen both mine office and my name;

The one ne'er got me credit, the other mickle blame. If thou hadst been Dromio to-day in my place, Thou would't have chang'd thy face, for a name, or thy name for an afs.

Luce. [within] What a coil is there! Dromio, who are thofe at the gate?

E. Dro. Let my mafter in, Luce.

Luce. Faith no; he comes too late;

And fo tell your master.

E. Dro. O Lord, I muft laugh:

Have at you with a proverb.-Shall I fet in my

staff?

Luce. Have at you with another: that's,-When?

can you tell?

S. Dro. If thy name be called Luce, Luce, thou haft answer'd him well.