Hard foole for Midas, I will none of thee,
Nor none of thee, thou pale and common drudge
Tweene man and man: but thou,thou meager lead,
Which rather threatneft then doft promife ought,
Thy paleneffe moues me more then eloquence,
And heare choose I,ioy be the confequence.
Por. How all the other paffions fleet to ayre,
As doubtfull thoughts,and rafh imbrac'd despaire:
And fhyddring feare,and greene-eyed iealousie.
O loue be moderate,allay thy extafie,

In measure range thy joy,fcant this exceffe,
-I feele too much thy bleffing,make it leffe,
For feare I furfet.

Baff. What finde I heere?

Faire Portias counterfeit. What demy God
Hath come fo neere creation? moue these eyes?
Or whither riding on the ball's of mine
Seeine they in motion? Heere are feuerd lips
Parted with fuger breath,fo sweet a barre
Should funder fuch fweet friends: heere in her haires
The painter playes the Spider,and hath wouen
A golden mesh t'intrap the hearts of men
Fafter then gnats in cobwebs,but her eyes,
How could he fee to do them? hauing made one,
Me-thinks it fhould haue power to fteale both his,
And leaue it felfe vnfurnifht: yet looke how farre
The fubftance of my praise doth wrong this fhadow
In vnderprizing it,(o farre this fhadow

Doth limpe behind the fubftance.Heer's the fcroule,
The continent and fummary of my fortune.

You that choose not by the view,
Chance as faire, and choose as true:
Since this fortune fals to you,
Be content, and feeks no new.
If you be well pleas'd with this,

And hold your fortune for your bliffe,
Turne you where your Lady is,
And claime her with a lowing kisse.

A gentle fcroule : Faire Lady,by your leaue,
I come by note to giue,and to receiue;
Like one of two contending in a prize,
That thinks he hath done well in peoples eyes ;
Hearing applause and vniuerfall fhout,
Giddy in fpirit,ftill gazing in a doubt,
Whether thofe pearles of praise be his or no.
So thrice faire Lady,ftand I euen fo,
As doubtfull whether what I fee be true,
Vntill confirm'd, fign'd,ratified by you.

Per. You fee me Lord Baffanio where I ftand,
Such as I am; though for my felfe alone
I would not be ambitious in my wish,
To with my felfe much better, yet for you,
I would be trebled twenty times my felfe,
A thoufand times more faire,ten thousand times
More rich,that onely to ftand high in your account,
I might in vertues,beauties, liuings, friends,
Exceed account: but the full fumme of me

Is fumme of fomething; which to terme in groffe,
Is an vnleffon'd gyrle, vnfchool'd, vnpractised,
Happy in this, he is not yet fo old

But the may learne: happier then this,
She is not bred fo dull, but she can learne;
Happiest of all, is that her gentle spirit
Commits it felfe to yours, to be directed
As from her Lord,her Gouernor, her King.
My felfe,and what is mine,to you and yours
Is now conuerted. But now I was the Lord
Of this faire manfion,master of my feruants,
Queene ore my felfe; and euen now, but now,
This house, thefe feruants, and this fame my felfe

Are

Are yours,my Lord, I giue them with this ring,
Which when you part from,lofe, or giue away,
Let it prefage the ruine of your loue,
And be my vantage to exclaime on you.

Baff Madame, you haue bereft me of all words,
Onely my blood fpeakes to you in my veines,
And there is fuch confufion in my powers,
As after fome Oration fairely fpoke
By a beloved Prince,there doth appeare
Among the buzzing pleased multitude.
Where euery fomething being blent together,
Turnes to a wilde of nothing, faue of ioy
Expreft, and not expreft: but when this ring
Parts from this finger,then parts life from hence,
O then be bold to lay Baffanio is dead.

Ner.My Lord and Lady, it is now our time
That haue ftood by and feene our wishes profper,
To cry good ioy good toy my Lord and Lady.
Gra.My Lord Baffanio, and my gentle Lady,
I wish you all the ioy that you can wish:
For I am fure you can with none from me :
And when your honours meane to folemnize
The bargaine of your faith: I do beseech you
Euen at that time I may be married to.

Baff. With all my heart, fo thou canft get a wife.
Gra.I thanke your Lordship,you haue got me one,
My eies my Lord,can looke as swift as yours;
You faw the Miftreffe, I beheld the Maid;
You lou'd,I lou'd for intermiffion,

No more pertaines to me my Lord then you,
Your fortune flood vpon the Casket there,
And fo did mine too,as the matter fals:
For wooing heere vntill I fwet againe,
And fwearing till my very roofe was dry,
With oathes of loue,at laft, if promife laft
I got a promise of this faire one here,

F 3.

To:

To haue her loue: prouided that your fortune
Atchieu'd her Miftris.

Por. Is this true,Nerrissa?

Ner.Maddam it is, so you stand pleas'd withall,
Baff. And do you Gratiano meane good faith?
Gra.Yes faith my Lord.

Baff Our feaft fhall be much honoured in your marriage.
Gra. Wee'l play with them the first boy for a thousand ducats
Ner. What,and stake downe?

Gra.No,we fhall nere win at that sport and take downe.
But who comes heere, Lorenzo and his infidell?
What,and my olde venetian friend,Salerio?

Enter Lorenzo,Ieffica,and Salerio a messenger from Venice.
Baff Lorenzo and Salerio, welcome hither,

If that the youth of my new intreft heere
Haue power to bid you welcome: by your leaue
I bid my very friends and countrymen

Sweete Portia welcome.

Por.So do I my Lord,they are entirely welcome.
Lor.I thanke your Honour,for my part my Lord,
My purpose was not to haue feene you heere,
But meeting with Salerio by the way,

He did entreate me paft all faying nay,
To come with him along.

Sal. I did my Lord,

And I haue reafon for it. Signior Anthoniv
Commends him to you.

Baff.Ere I ope his Letter,

I pray you tell me how my good friend doth.
Sal.Not ficke my Lord,vnleffe it be in minde,
Nor well, vnleffe in minde: his Letter there

Will fhew you his eftate.

He opens the Letter.

Gra.Nerriffa,cheere yon ftranger,bid her welcome, Your hand Salerio, what's the newes from Venice?

How

How doth that royall Merchant,good Anthonio?
I know he will be glad of our fucceffe,

We are the lafons, we haue won the fleece.

Sal. I would you had won the fleece that he hath loft.
Por.There are fome fhrewd contents in yon fame paper,
That fteales the colour from Baffanios cheeke,

Some deare friend dead,elfe nothing in the world
Could turne fo much the conftitution

Of any conftant man: what worse and worse?
With leaue Baffanio, I am halfe your felfe,
And I must freely haue the halfe of any thing
That this fame paper brings you,
Ball. Ofweete Portia,

Heere are a few of the vnpleasantft words
That euer blotted paper. Gentle Lady,
When I did first impart my loue to you,
I freely told you all the wealth I had
Ran in my veines, I was a Gentleman,
And then I told you true : and yet deere Lady,
Rating my felfe at nothing,you shall fee.
How much I was a Braggart, when I told you
My ftate was nothing, I should then haue told you
That I was worse then nothing; for indeed
Ihaue ingag'd my felfe to a deere friend,
Ingag'd my friend to his meere enemy
To feed my meanes. Heer's a Letter Lady.
The paper as the body of my friend,
And cuery word in it a gaping wound,
Iffuing life blood. But is it true Salerio?
Hath all his ventures faild ? what,not one hit,
From Tripolis, from Mexico, and England,
From Lisbon, Barbary, and India,

And not one veffell fcape the dreadfull touch
Of Merchant-marring rocks?

Sal. Not one my Lord.

Befides, it should appeare,that if he had.

The