The danger formerly by me rehearsed.

Down, therefore, and beg mercy of the Duke. [Shylock kneels, speechless. Gratiano. Beg that thou mayst have leave to hang

thyself:

And yet, thy wealth being forfeit to the state, 360 Thou hast not left the value of a cord;

Therefore thou must be hanged at the state's charge. Duke. That thou shalt see the difference of our spirits,

I pardon thee thy life before thou ask it:

For half thy wealth, it is Antonio's ;
The other half comes to the general state,
Which humbleness may drive unto a fine.
Portia. Aye, for the state-not for Antonio.

365

Shylock [in a low moan]. Nay, take my life and all; pardon not that:

370

You take my house, when you do take the prop
That doth sustain my house: you take my life,
When you do take the means whereby I live.
Portia. What mercy can you render him, Antonio ?
[Shylock staggers to his feet.

Gratiano. A halter gratis; nothing else, for God's sake. Antonio. So please my lord the Duke, and all the court, To quit the fine for one half of his goods,

I am content; so he will let me have

The other half in use, to render it,

That lately stole his daughter :

376

Upon his death, unto the gentleman

380

Two things provided more, that, for this favour,
He presently become a Christian ;

[Shylock's face works convulsively, and he lifts his hands appealingly to the Duke.

The other, that he do record a gift,

Here in the court, of all he dies possessed,

Unto his son Lorenzo and his daughter.
Duke. He shall do this, or else I do recant

385

The pardon that I late pronounced here.

Portia. Art thou contented, Jew? what dost thou say? Shylock [after a long pause]. I am content.

Portia.

Clerk, draw a deed of gift.

Shylock. I pray you give me leave to go from hence; I am not well; send the deed after me,

And I will sign it.

39г

Get thee gone, but do it.

Duke. [Shylock totters out of court, feeling his way along the wall, Gratiano following him as far as the door. Gratiano. In christening thou shalt have two godfathers:

Had I been judge, thou shouldst have had ten more, To bring thee to the gallows, not the font.

395

Duke [to Portia]. Sir, I entreat you home with me to dinner.

Portia. I humbly do desire your grace of pardon : I must away this night toward Padua, And it is meet I presently set forth.

Duke. I am sorry that your leisure serves you not. Antonio, gratify this gentleman;

For, in my mind, you are much bound to him.

401

[Exeunt the Duke, with the Magnificoes and his train. Bassanio. Most worthy gentleman, I and my friend Have by your wisdom been this day acquitted Of grievous penalties; in lieu whereof, Three thousand ducats, due unto the Jew, We freely cope your courteous pains withal.

Antonio. And stand indebted, over and above,

In love and service to you evermore.

Portia. He is well paid that is well satisfied;

And I, delivering you, am satisfied,

And therein do account myself well paid:
My mind was never yet more mercenary.

405

410

I pray you, [with a slight laugh, which she checks at once] know me when we meet again :

I wish you well, and so I take my leave.

415

Bassanio. Dear sir, of force I must attempt you farther:

Take some remembrance of us, as a tribute,

Not as a fee: grant me two things, I pray you,
Not to deny me, and to pardon me.

Portia. You press me får, and therefore I will yield. [To Antonio.] Give me your gloves, I'll wear them for your sake;

421

[To Bassanio.] And, for your love, I'll take this ring from

you:

Do not draw back your hand: I'll take no more;
And you in love shall not deny me this.

Bassanio. This ring, good sir-alas, it is a trifle !

I will not shame myself to give you this;

425

Portia. I will have nothing else but only this;

And now methinks I have a mind to it.

Bassanio. There's more depends on this than on the value.

The dearest ring in Venice will I give you,

And find it out by proclamation :

Only for this, I pray you pardon me.

Portia. I see, sir, you are liberal in offers:

You taught me first to beg; and now methinks

430

You teach me how a beggar should be answered. 435 Bassanio. Good sir, this ring was given me by my wife;

And, when she put it on, she made me vow
That I should never sell nor give nor lose it.

Portia. That 'scuse serves many men to save their gifts.

An if your wife be not a mad-woman,

And know how well I have deserved this ring,
She would not hold out enemy for ever,
For giving it to me. Well, peace be with you!

440

[Exeunt Portia and Nerissa. Antonio. My Lord Bassanio, let him have the ring: Let his deservings, and my love withal, Be valued 'gainst your wife's commandément.

445

Bassanio. Go, Gratiano, run and overtake him;
Give him the ring; and bring him, if thou canst,
Unto Antonio's house: away! make haste.
[Exit Gratiano with the ring.

Come, you and I will thither presently;
And in the morning early will we both
Fly toward Belmont: come, Antonio.

450

[Exeunt.

SCENE VII. THE COMEDY OF THE RINGS.

Portia and Nerissa, with their disguises laid aside, return to Belmont and find Lorenzo and Jessica in the garden and music playing to welcome them. It is a bright moonlight night, but passing clouds have just covered

the moon.

Nerissa had succeeded in begging her husband's ring as he showed the supposed clerk the way to Shylock's house

after the trial when she went to deliver the deed for signature.

Enter Portia and Nerissa.

Portia. That light we see is burning in my hall.
How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world.

Nerissa. When the moon shone, we did not see the candle.

Portia. So doth the greater glory dim the less: 5 A substitute shines brightly as a king, Until a king be by; and then his state Empties itself, as doth an inland brook Into the main of waters. Music! hark!

Nerissa. It is your music, madam, of the house. 10 Portia. Nothing is good, I see, without respect : Methinks it sounds much sweeter than by day.

15

Nerissa. Silence bestows that virtue on it, madam.
Portia. The crow doth sing as sweetly as the lark,
When neither is attended; and I think
The nightingale, if she should sing by day,
When every goose is cackling, would be thought
No better a musician than the wren.

Peace, ho! the moon sleeps with Endymion,
And would not be awaked.

[The music ceases. Lorenzo [advancing to meet them]. That is the voice, 20 Or I am much deceived, of Portia.

Portia. He knows me, as the blind man knows the cuckoo,

By the bad voice.

Lorenzo.

Dear lady, welcome home.

Portia. We have been praying for our husbands' wel

fare,

Which speed, we hope, the better for our words. 25 Are they returned?

Lorenzo.

Madam, they are not yet;

But there is come a messenger before,

To signify their coming.

Portia.

Go in, Nerissa;

Give order to my servants that they take
No note at all of our being absent hence;

Nor you, Lorenzo; Jessica, nor you.

30

[A tucket sounds, and at this moment the moon shines out again.

Lorenzo. Your husband is at hand; I hear his trumpet: We are no tell-tales, madam; fear you not.

Portia. This night methinks is but the daylight sick; It looks a little paler: 'tis a day,

Such as the day is when the sun is hid.

35

Enter Bassanio, Antonio, Gratiano, and their followers. Bassanio and Gratiano greet their wives.

Bassanio. We should hold day with the Antipodes, If you would walk in absence of the sun.

40

Portia. Let me give light, but let me not be light; For a light wife doth make a heavy husband, And never be Bassanio so for me: But God sort all! You are welcome home, my lord. Bassanio. I thank you, madam: give welcome to my friend;

This is the man, this is Antonio,

To whom I am so infinitely bound.

45

Portia. You should in all sense be much bound to him, For, as I hear, he was much bound for you.

Antonio. No more than I am well acquitted of. Portia. Sir, you are very welcome to our house : It must appear in other ways than words, Therefore I scant this breathing courtesy.

50

Gratiano [excitedly to Nerissa]. By yonder moon I swear you do me wrong;

In faith, I gave it to the judge's clerk.

55

Portia. A quarrel, ho, already! what's the matter? Gratiano. About a hoop of gold, a paltry ring That she did give me; whose posy was For all the world like cutler's poetry

Upon a knife, 'Love me, and leave me not.'

Nerissa. What talk you of the posy or the value?

бо

You swore to me, when I did give it you,
That you would wear it till your hour of death,
And that it should lie with you in your grave;
Though not for me, yet for your vehement oaths,
You should have been respective, and have kept it.
Gave it a judge's clerk! no, God's my judge,
65
The clerk will ne'er wear hair on 's face that had it.
Gratiano. He will, an if he live to be a man.
Nerissa. Aye, if a woman live to be a man.

Gratiano. Now, by this hand, I gave it to a youth,