5

Sim. Ay, forsooth; but he is as tall a man of his hands, as any is between this and his head: he hath fought with a warrener.

Quick. How say you?-O! I should remember him: does he not hold up his head, as it were, and strut in his gait?

Sim. Yes, indeed, does he.

Quick. Well, heaven send Anne Page no worse fortune! Tell master parson Evans, I will do what I can for your master: Anne is a good girl, and I wish

Re-enter RUGBY.

Rug. Out, alas! here comes my master.

Quick. We shall all be shent. Run in here, good young man; go into this closet. [Shuts SIMPLE in the Closet.] He will not stay long.-What, John Rugby! John, what, John, I say!-Go, John, go inquire for my master; I doubt, he be not well, that he comes not home:" and down, down, adown-a," &c.

Enter Doctor CAIUS.

[Sings.

Caius. Vat is you sing? I do not like dese toys. Pray you, go and vetch me in my closet un boitier verd'; a box, a green-a box: do intend vat I speak? a green-a box.

Quick. Ay, forsooth; I'll fetch it you. [Aside.] I am glad he went not in himself: if he had found the young man, he would have been horn-mad.

Caius. Fe, fe, fe, fe! ma foi, il fait fort chaud. Je m'en vais à la cour,-la grande affaire.

5 he is as TALL a man,] i. e. as bold or courageous a man; one of innumerable instances to the same effect. See Vol. iii. pp. 330. 401. 436, &c.

• We shall all be SHENT.] i. e. reproved or scolded. The word occurs again in Vol. iii. p. 404; Vol. vi. p. 252; and Vol. vii. p. 281.

7 UN BOITIER VERD ;] We need hardly mention that the French in this scene is much corrupted in the old copies: thus, here for un boitier verd, we have un boyteene verd. From what is said in the quartos, it should seem to be a box of ointment of which Caius was in want.

Quick. Is it this, sir?

Caius. Ouy; mette le au mon pocket; dépéche, quickly. -Vere is dat knave Rugby?

Quick. What, John Rugby! John!

Rug. Here, sir.

Caius. You are John Rugby, and you are Jack Rugby: come, take-a your rapier, and come after my heel to de

court.

Rug. "Tis ready, sir, here in the porch.

Caius. By my trot, I tarry too long.Od's me! Qu'ay j'oublié? dere is some simples in my closet, dat I vill not for the varld I shall leave behind.

Quick. [Aside.] Ah me! he'll find the young man there, and be mad.

Caius. O diable, diable! vat is in my closet?-Villainy! larron! [Pulling SIMPLE out.] Rugby, my rapier! Quick. Good master, be content.

Caius. Verefore shall I be content-a?

Quick. The young man is an honest man.

Caius. Vat shall the honest man do in my closet? dere is no honest man dat shall come in my closet.

Quick. I beseech you, be not so phlegmatic; hear the truth of it: he came of an errand to me from parson Hugh.

Caius. Vell.

Sim. Ay, forsooth, to desire her to—

Quick. Peace, I pray you.

Caius. Peace-a your tongue!-Speak-a your tale. Sim. To desire this honest gentlewoman, your maid, to speak a good word to mistress Anne Page for my master, in the way of marriage.

Quick. This is all, indeed, la; but I'll ne'er put my finger in the fire, and need not.

Caius. Sir Hugh send-a you?-Rugby, baillez me some paper: tarry you a littel-a while. [Writes. Quick. I am glad he is so quiet: if he had been thoroughly moved, you should have heard him so loud, and

so melancholy. But notwithstanding, man, I'll do you your master what good I can: and the very yea and the no is, the French doctor, my master,-I may call him my master, look you, for I keep his house; and I wash, wring, brew, bake, scour, dress meat and drink, make the beds, and do all myself;

Sim. 'Tis a great charge, to come under one body's hand.

Quick. Are you avis'd o' that? you shall find it a great charge and to be up early and down late;—but notwithstanding, to tell you in your ear, (I would have no words of it) my master himself is in love with mistress Anne Page: but notwithstanding that, I know Anne's mind; that's neither here nor there.

Caius. You jack'nape, give-a dis letter to sir Hugh; by gar, it is a shallenge: I vill cut his troat in de park; and I vill teach a scurvy jack-a-nape priest to meddle or make. You may be gone; it is not good you tarry here:-by gar, I vill cut all his two stones; by gar, he shall not have a stone to trow at his dog.

[Exit SIMPLE. Quick. Alas! he speaks but for his friend.

Caius. It is no matter-a for dat:-do not you tell-a me, dat I shall have Anne Page for myself?-By gar, I vill kill de Jack priest; and I have appointed mine Host of de Jarretière to measure our weapon.-By gar, I vill myself have Anne Page.

Quick. Sir, the maid loves you, and all shall be well. We must give folks leave to prate: what, the good years!

Caius. Rugby, come to the court vit me.-By gar, if I have not Anne Page, I shall turn your head out of my door. Follow my heels, Rugby.

8

[Exeunt CAIUS and RUGBY.

What, the GOOD YEAR!] An exclamation of the time, not, by any means, necessarily derived from the morbus Gallicus, or goujeers. See Vol. ii. p. 19; and Vol. vii. p. 477.

Quick. You shall have An fool's-head of your own. No, I know Anne's mind for that: never a woman in Windsor knows more of Anne's mind than I do, nor can do more than I do with her, I thank heaven. Fent. [Within.] Who's within there, ho? Quick. Who's there, I trow?

Come near the house,

Fent. How now, good woman! how dost thou ? Quick. The better, that it pleases your good worship to ask.

Fent. What news? how does pretty mistress Anne? Quick. In truth, sir, and she is pretty, and honest, and gentle; and one that is your friend, I can tell you that by the way; I praise heaven for it.

Fent. Shall I do any good, think'st thou? Shall I not lose my suit?

Quick. Troth, sir, all is in his hands above: but notwithstanding, master Fenton, I'll be sworn on a book, she loves you.-Have not your worship a wart above your eye?

Fent. Yes, marry, have I; what of that?

Quick. Well, thereby hangs a tale.-Good faith, it is such another Nan;-but, I detest, an honest maid as ever broke bread:-we had an hour's talk of that wart. -I shall never laugh but in that maid's company ;— but, indeed, she is given too much to allicholly and musing. But for you-well, go to.

Fent. Well, I shall see her to-day. Hold, there's money for thee; let me have thy voice in my behalf: if thou seest her before me, commend me

Quick. Will I? i'faith, that we will; and I will tell

9 Will I? i'faith, that we will ;] So the folios: Mr. Halliwell's MS. (which we suspect to be a transcript from the folio 1632, with certain corrections and variations, this being one,) reads, "i'faith, that I will." The quartos are silent.

your worship more of the wart, the next time we have confidence, and of other wooers.

Fent. Well, farewell; I am in great haste now.

[Exit.

Quick. Farewell to your worship.-Truly, an honest gentleman; but Anne loves him not, for I know Anne's mind as well as another does:-Out upon't! what have I forgot?

[Exit.

ACT II. SCENE I.

Before PAGE's house.

Enter Mistress PAGE, with a Letter.

Mrs. Page. What! have I 'scaped love-letters in the holy-day time of my beauty, and am I now a subject for them? Let me see.

[Reads.

"Ask me no reason why I love you; for though love use reason for his precisian, he admits him not for his counsellor. You are not young, no more am I go to then, there's sympathy. You are merry, so am I; ha! ha! then, there's more sympathy: you love sack, and so do I; would you desire better sympathy? Let it suffice thee, mistress Page, (at the least, if the love of soldier can suffice) that I love thee. I will not say, pity me, 'tis not a soldier-like phrase; but I say, love me. By me,

Thine own true knight,

By day or night,

Or any kind of light,

With all his might,

For thee to fight.

JOHN FALSTAFF."

10 What! have I 'scaped love-letters-] In the first folio, the pronoun is omitted, but it is added in the second folio.