Like death, when he fhuts up the day of life;
Each part, depriv'd of fupple government,
Shall itiff, and ftark, and cold, appear like death:
And in this borrow'd likeness of fhrunk death
Thou shalt remain full two and forty hours,
And then awake as from a pleasant fleep.
Now when the bridegroom in the morning comes
To roufe thee from thy bed, there art thou dead:
Then (as the manner of our country is)
In thy best robes uncover'd on the bier,
Thou shalt be borne to that fame ancient vault,
Where all the kindred of the Capulets lie.
In the mean time, against thou shalt awake,
Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift;
And hither fhall he come; and he and I
Will watch thy waking?, and that very night
Shall Romeo bear thee hence to Mantua.
And this fhall free thee from this present shame;

6 Then (as the manner of our country is)

In thy best robes uncover'd on the bier,] The Italian custom here alluded to, of carrying the dead body to the grave with the face uncowered, (which is not mentioned by Painter) our authour found parti cularly defcribed in The Tragicall Hyftory of Romeus and Juliet:

"Another ufe there is, that whofoever dies,

"Borne to their church with open face upon the bier be lies, In wonted weed attir'd, not wrapt in winding-fheet-,"

MALONE.

In thy beft robes uncover'd on the bier,] Between this line and the next, the quartos 1599, 1609, and the first folio, introduce the fol lowing verfe, which the poet very probably had ftruck out on his revifal, because it is quite unneceffary, as the fenfe of it is repeated, and as it will not connect with either:

Be borne to burial in thy kindred's grave.

Had Virgil lived to have revised his neid, he would hardly have per mitted both of the following lines to remain in his text:

"At Venus obfcuro gradientes aëre fepfit;

"Et multo nebulæ circum deg fudit amicu."

The aukward repetition of the nominative cafe in the fecond of them, feems to decide very strongly against it, STEEVENS.

7-and be and İ

Will watch thy waking,-] These words are not in the folio.

JOHNSON.

If no unconftant toy, nor womanish fear,

Abate thy valour in the acting it.

Jul. Give me, give me! O tell me not of fear. Fri. Hold; get you gone, be ftrong and profperous In this refolve: I'll fend a friar with speed

To Mantua, with my letters to thy lord.

Jul. Love, give me ftrength! and ftrength fhall helg

afford.

Farewel, dear father!

SCENE

II.

A Room in Capulet's House.

[Exeunt.

Enter CAPULET, Lady CAPULET, Nurfe, and Servant. Cap. So many guests invite as here are writ.

Sirrah, go hire me twenty cunning cooks.

[Exit Servant.

2. Serv. You shall have none ill, fir; for I'll try if they can lick their fingers.

Cap. How can't thou try them fo?

2. Serv. Marry, fir, 'tis an ill cook that cannot lick his own fingers therefore he, that cannot lick his fingers, goes not with me.

Cap. Go, begone.

[Exit Servant.

We shall be much unfurnifh'd for this time.

What, is my daughter gone to friar Laurence?
Nurfe. Ay, forfooth.

Cap. Well, he may chance to do fome good on her; A peevish felf-will'd harlotry it is.

8

Enter JULIET.

Nur. See, where fhe comes from fhrift with merry look.

If no unconftant toy, &c.] If no fickle freak, no light caprice, no change of fancy, hinder the performance. JOHNSON.

9 If no unconftant toy, nor womanish fear,

Abate thy valour in the acting it.] Thefe expreffions are borrowed from the poem:

"Caft off from thee at once the weed of womanish dread,
"With manly courage arm thyself from heel unto the head.
"God grant he fo confirm in thee thy prefent will,
"That no inconftant toy thee let thy promife to fulfill!"

-from Shrift-] i. e. from confeffion. STEEVENS.

MALONE.

Cap.

Cap. How now, my head-strong? where have you been gadding?

Jul. Where I have learn'd me to repent
Of difobedient oppofition

To you, and your behefts; and am enjoin'd
By holy Lawrence to fall proftrate here,

the fin

And beg your pardon:-Pardon, I beseech you!
Henceforward I am ever rul'd by you.

Cap. Send for the county; go tell him of this;
I'll have this knot knit up to-morrow morning.
Jul. I met the youthful lord at Lawrence' cell;
And gave him what becomed love I might,
Not stepping o'er the bounds of modesty.

Cap. Why, I am glad on't; this is well,- ftand up:
This is as't should be.--Let me fee the county;
Ay, marry, go, I fay, and fetch him hither.-
Now, afore God, this reverend holy friar,
All our whole city is much bound to him.
Jul. Nurfe, will you go with me into my closet,
To help me fort fuch needful ornaments
As you think fit to furnish me to-morrow?

La. Cap. No, not till thursday; there is time enough.
Cap. Go, nurse, go with her :-we'll to church to-
[Exeunt JULIET, and Nurse.
La. Cap. We fhall be fhort 3 in our provifion;

morrow.

'Tis now near night.

this reverend boly friar,

Cap.

All our whole city is much bound to him.] So, in Romeus and

Juliet, 1562.

"this is not, wife, the friar's firft defert;

"In all our commonweal fcarce one is to be found,

"But is, for fome good turn, unto this boly father bound."

MALONE.

Thus the folio, and the quartos 1599 and 1609. The oldeft quarto reads, I think, more grammatically:

STEEVENS.

All our whole city is much bound unto. 3 We shall be fort-] That is, we shall be defective. JOHNSON. 4 'Tis now near night.] It appears in a foregoing fcene, that Romeo parted from his bride at day-break on Tuesday morning. Immediately afterwards the went to Friar Lawrence, and he particularly mentions the day of the week :-[" Wednesday is to-morrow."] She could not

well

Cap. Tufh! I will ftir about,

And all things fhall be well, I warrant thee, wife:
Go thou to Juliet, help to deck up her ;

I'll not to bed to-night; let me alone;
I'll play the housewife for this once.-What, ho!
They are all forth: Well, I will walk myself
To county Paris, to prepare him up

Against to-morrow: my heart is wondrous light,
Since this fame wayward girl is fo reclaim'd. [Exeunt.

Juliet's Chamber.

Enter JULIET, and Nurfe".

Jul. Ay, thofe attires are beft:-But, gentle nurfe,
I pray thee, leave me to myself to-night;
For I have need of many orifons

well have remained more than an hour or two with the friar, and the is just now returned from thrift;-yet lady Capulet fays, 'tis near night," and this fame night is afcertained to be Tuesday. This is one out of many inftances of our authour's inaccuracy in the computation of time. MALONE.

5 Enter Juliet, and Nurfe.] Instead of the next fpeech, the quarto 3597, fupplies the following fhort dialogue:

Nurfe. Come, come; what need you anie thing else?

Juliet. Nothing, good nurse, but leave me to mylelfe.

Nurfe. Well, there's a cleane fmocke under your pillow, and fo good night. STEEVENS.

6 For I bave need of many orifons—] Juliet plays most of her pranks under the appearance of religion: perhaps Shakspeare meant to punish her hypocrity. JOHNSON.

This pretence of Juliet's, in order to get rid of the nurfe, was fuggefted by The Tragicall Hyftory of Romeus and Juliet, and fome of the expreffions of this fpeech were borrowed from thence:

"Dear friend, quoth fhe, you know to-morrow is the day
"Of new contract; wherefore, this night, my purpose is to pray
"Unto the beavenly minds that dwell above the skies,
"And order all the courfe of things as they can best devise,
"That they fo fmile upon the doings of to-morrow,

"That all the remnant of my life may be exempt from forrow;
"Wherefore, I pray you, leave me bere alone this night,
"But fee that you to-morrow come before the dawning light,

For you must curl my hair, and fet on my attire." MALONE.

To

To move the heavens to fmile upon my state,
Which, well thou know'ft, is cross and full of fin.

Enter Lady CAPULET.

La. Cap. What, are you bufy? do you need my help?
Jul. No, madam; we have cull'd fuch neceffaries
As are behoveful for our state to-morrow :

So please you, let me now be left alone,
And let the nurse this night fit up with you;
For, I am fure, you have your hands full all,
In this fo fudden bufinefs.

La. Cap. Good night!

Get thee to bed, and reft; for thou haft need.

[Exeunt Lady Capulet, and Nurse.

Jul. Farewel!-God knows, when we shall meet

again.

I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins,
That almost freezes up the heat of life:
I'll call them back again to comfort me;-
Nurfe!-What should she do here?

My difmal scene I needs must act alone.

Come, phial.

What if this mixture do not work at all??

Muft

7 Farewel!] This fpeech received confiderable additions after the elder copy was published. STEEVENS.

8 I bave a faint cold fear thrills through my veins,

That almoft freezes up the beat of life:] So, in Romeus and Juliet, 1562:

"And whilft fhe in thefe thoughts doth dwell fomewhat too long, "The force of her imagining anon did wax fo ftrong,

"That the furmis'd the faw out of the hollow vault, "A grifly thing to look upon, the carcafe of Tybalt; "Right in the self fame fort that the few days before

"Had feen him in his blood embrew'd, to death eke wounded fore. "Her dainty tender parts 'gan shiver all for dread,

"Her golden hair did stand upright upon her chillish head : "Then preffed with the fear that the there lived in,

"Afweat as cold as mountain ice pierc'd through ber tender skin."

MALONE.

9 What if this mixture do not work at all?] Here alfo Shakspeare appears to have followed the poem:

s—to