Ped. Of Mantua. Tra. Of Mantua, sir ?-marry, God forbid! And come to Padua, careless of your life? Ped. My life, sir! how, I pray? for that goes hard To come to Padua; Know you not the cause ? Tra. Among them, know you one Vincentio ? A merchant of incomparable wealth. Tra. He is my father, sir; and, sooth to say, In countenance somewhat doth resemble you. Bion. [Aside.] As much as an apple doth an oyster, and Tra. To save your life in this extremity, This favour will I do you for his sake; And think it not the worst of all your fortunes, His name and credit shall you undertake, And in my house you shall be friendly lodg'd ;- Ped. O, sir, I do; and will repute you ever [all one Tra. Then go with me, to make the matter good. To pass assurance of a dower in marriage [Exe SCENE III. A Room in PETRUCHIO'S House. Enter KATHARINA and GRUMIO. Gru. No, no, forsooth; I dare not, for my life. Kath. The more my wrong, the more his spite appears : What, did he marry me to famish me? Beggars, that come unto my father's door, Kath. 'Tis passing good; I pr'ythee let me have it. Kath. I like it well; good Grumio, fetch it me. What say you to a piece of beef, and mustard? Kath. Then, both, or one, or any thing thou wilt. That feed'st me with the very name of meat: Go, get thee gone, I say. Enter PETRUCHIO with a dish of meat; and HORTENSIO. Fet. How fares my Kate? What, sweeting, all amort? Hor. Mistress, what cheer? Kath. 'Faith, as cold as can be. Pet. Pluck up thy spirits, look cheerfully upon me. Here, love; thou seest how diligent I am, [Sets the dish on a table. Kath. 'Pray you, let it stand. Pet. The poorest service is repaid with thanks; Hor. Signior Petruchio, fye! you are to blame! [Aside. With silken coats, and caps, and golden rings, Enter Tailor. ---Come, tailor, let us see these ornaments :' Enter Haberdasher. Lay forth the gown.-What news with you, sir? A knack, a toy, a trick, a baby's cap; Away with it, come, let me have a bigger. Kath. I'll have no bigger; this doth fit the time, And gentlewomen wear such caps as these. Pet. When you are gentle, you shall have one too, And not till then. Hor. That will not be in haste. [Aside. Kath. Why, sir, I trust, I may have leave to speak; And speak I will; I am no child, no babe : Your betters have endur'd me say my mind ; [1] In our poet's time, women's gowns were usually made by men. MALONE. And, if you cannot, best you stop your ears. Even to the uttermost, as I please, in words. Pet. Why, thou say'st true; it is a paltry cap, A custard-coffin,3 a bauble, a silken pie: I love thee well, in that thou lik'st it not. Kath. Love me, or love me not, I like the cap; And it I will have, or I will have none. Pet. Thy gown? why, ay :--Come, tailor, let us see't. O mercy, God! what masking stuff is here? What's this? a sleeve? 'tis like a demi-cannon: Why, what, o'devil's name, tailor, call'st thou this? Pet. Marry, and did; but if you be remember'd, Go, hop me over every kennel home, For you shall hop without my custom, sir: Pet. Why, true; he means to make a puppet of thee. Tai. She says, your worship means to make a puppet of her. Pet. O monstrous arrogance! thou liest, thou thread, Thou thimble," Thou yard, three-quarters, half-yard, quarter, nail, [2] Shakespeare has here copied nature with great skill. Petruchio, by frightening, starving, and overwatching his wife, had tamed her into gentleness and submission. And the audience expects to hear no more of the shrew: when on her being crossed, in the article of fashion and finery, the most inveterate folly of the sex, she flies out again, though for the last time, into all the intemperate rage of her nature. WARBURTON. [3] A coffin was the culinary term for the raised crust of a pie or custard. STEEV. Censers in barbers' shops are now disused, but they may easily be imagined to have been vessels which, for the emission of the smoke, were cut with great number and varieties of interstices. JOHNSON. [5] The tailor's trade, having an appearance of effeminacy, has always been, among the rugged English, liable to sarcasms and contempt. JOHNSON. Away, thou rag, thou quantity, thou remnant; As thou shalt think on prating whilst thou liv'st! Tai. Your worship is deceiv'd; the gown is made Grumio gave order how it should be done. Gru. I gave him no order, I gave him the stuff. Tai. I have. Gru. Face not me: thou hast braved many men ; brave not me; I will neither be faced, nor braved. I say unto thee,-I bid thy master cut out the gown; but I did not bid him cut it to pieces: ergo, thou liest. Tai. Why, here is the note of the fashion to testify. Gru. The note lies in his throat, if he say I said so. Gru. Master, if ever I said loose-bodied gown," sew me in the skirts of it, and beat me to death with a bottom of brown thread: I said, a gown. Pet. Proceed. Tai. With a small compassed cape:8 Gru. I confess the cape. Tai. With a trunk sleeve;- Gru. Error i' th' bill, sir; error i' th' bill. I'commanded the sleeves should be cut out, and sewed up again; and that I'll prove upon thee, though thy little finger be armed in a thimble. Tai. This is true that I say; an I had thee in place where, thou should'st know it. Gru. I am for thee straight: take thou the bill, give me [6] i. e. made many men fine. Bravery was the ancient term for elegance of dress.-Faced many things, i. e. turned up many things with facings. STEEVENS [7] 1 think the joke is impaired unless we read, with the original play already quoted-a loose body's gown. It appears, however, that loose-bodied gowns were the dress of harlots. STEEVENS. [8] A compassed cape is a round cape. To compass is to come round. JOHNS. Stubbs, in his Anatomy of Abuses, 1565, gives a most elaborate description of the gowns of women; and adds, " Some have capes reaching down to the midst of their backs, faced with velvet, or else with some fine wrought taffata, at the least, fringed about very bravely." STEEVENS |