Enter Capulet, Paris, and Servant.

Cap. And Montague is bound as well as I,
In penalty alike, and 'tis not hard I think,
For men fo old as we to keep the peace.

Par. Of honourable reck'ning are you both,
And, pity 'tis, you liv'd at odds fo long.
But now, my Lord, what fay you to my Suit?

Cap. But faying o'er what I have faid before;
My child is yet a ftranger in the world,
She hath not feen the Change of fourteen years;
Let two more fummers wither in their pride,
Ere we may think her ripe to be a bride.

• She is the hopeful lady of my earth:] This line not in the first edition. POPE The lady of his earth is an expreffion not very intelligible, unlefs he means that he is heir to his eftate, and I fuppofe no man

Par. Younger than she are happy mothers made. Cap. And too foon marr'd are those so early made. The earth hath swallow'd all my hopes but she,

I

She is the hopeful lady of my earth,

But woo her, gentle Paris, get her heart,
My will to her confent is but a part;
If the agree, within her fcope of choice
Lies my confent, and fair according voice:
This night, I hold an old-accustom❜d Feast,
Whereto I have invited many a guest,
Such as I love; and you, among the store,
One more, most welcome, makes my number more.
At my poor houfe, look to behold this night

* Earth-treading stars that make dark heaven's light.

Such

ever called his lands his earth. I will venture to propose a bold change.

She is the hope and stay of my full years.

2 Earth-treading fars that make dark HEAVEN's light.] This nonfenfe

Such comfort as 'do lufty young men feel,
When well-apparel'd April on the heel
Of limping Winter treads, ev'n fuch delight
Among fresh female buds fhall you this night
Inherit at my house; hear all, all see,
And like her moft, whofe merit moft fhall be:
+ Which on more view of many, mine, being one,
May ftand in number, tho' in reck'ning none.
Come, go with me.
with me. Go, firrah, trudge about,
Through fair Verona; find those persons out,
Whose names are written there; and to them fay,
My houfe and welcome on their pleasure stay.
[Exeunt Capulet and Paris.

nonfenfe should be reformed
thus,

•

· Earth treading ftars that make
dark EVEN light.

i. . When the evening is dark
and without ftars, these earthly
ftars fupply their place, and light
it up. So again in this play,

Her beauty hangs upon the cheek
of night,

ear.

Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop's WARBURTON. But why nonfense ? Is any thing more commonly faid, than that beauties eclipfe the fun? Has not Pope the thought and the word?

Sol through white curtains foot
a tim❜rous ray,

And ope'd thofe eyes that must
echiple the day.
Both the old and the new read-
ing are philofophical nonfenfe,
but they are both, and both e-
qually poetical fense.

3

-do lufty young men feel,] To fay, and to fay in pompous words, that a young man shall feel

as much in an affembly of beau-
tes, as young men feel in the month
of April, is furely to waste found
upon a very poor fentiment. I
read,

Such comfort as do lufty yeomen
feel.

You shall feel from the fight and
converfation of those ladies, fuch
hopes of happiness and fuch
pleafure, as the farmer receives
from the fpring, when the plenty
of the year begins, and the prof-
pect of the harvest fills him with
delight.

4 Which on more view of many,
mine, being one,
May ftand in number, tho' in

reck'ning none] The first of
thefe lines I do not understand.
The old folio gives no help; the
paffage is there, Which one more
view. I can offer nothing bet
ter than this:

Within your view of many
nine being one,
May and in number, &c.

Serv. Find them out, whofe names are written here?

It is written, that the Shoemaker fhould meddle with his Yard, and the Tailor with his Laft, the Fisher with his Pencil, and the Painter with his Nets. But I am fent to find those Perfons, whofe names are here writ; and can never find what names the writing perfon hath here writ. I must to the Learned. In good time,

Enter Benvolio and Romeo.

Ben. Tut, man! one fire burns out another's burn-
ing,

One pain is leffen'd by another's Anguifh,
Turn giddy, and be help'd by back ward turning,
One defperate grief cure with another's Languish;
Take thou fome new infection to the eye,
And the rank poison of the old will die.

Rom. Your plantan leaf is excellent for that.

Ben. For what, I pray thee?

Rom. For your broken fhin.

Ben. Why, Romeo, art thou mad?

Rom. Not mad, but bound more than a mad-man

is; Shut up in prison, kept without my food, Whipt and tormented, and-Good-e'en, good fellow. [To the Servant. Serv. God gi' good e'en.-I pray, Sir, can you read?

Rom. Ay, mine own fortune in my mifery.
Serv. Perhaps you have learn'd it without book.
But, I pray,

Can

you read any thing you fee?

Rom. Ay, if I know the letters and the language.
Serv. Ye fay honeftly. Reft you merry.
Rom. Stay, fellow, I can read.

VOL. VIII,

с

[He

[He reads the lift.]

Signior Martino, and his wife and daughters; Count

Anfelm, and his beauteous fifters; the lady widow of Vitruvio; Signior Placentio, and his lovely neices; Mercutio, and his brother Valentine: mine uncle Capulet, bis wife and daughters; my fair neice Rofaline; Livia; Signior Valentio, and his coufin Tybalt; Lucio, and the lively Helena.

5 A fair affembly; whither fhould they come ? Serv. Up.

Rom. Whither? to fupper?

Serv. To our house.

Rom. Whofe house?

Serv. My mafter's.

Rom. Indeed, I fhould have afk'd you that before. Serv. Now I'll tell you without afking. My mafter is the great rich Capulet, and if you be not of the Houfe of Montagues, I pray, come and crush a cup of wine. Reft you merry. [Exit.

Ben. At this fame ancient Feaft of Capulet's
Sups the fair Rofaline, whom thou so lov❜st;
With all th' admired beauties of Verona.
Go thither, and, with unattainted eye,
Compare her face with fome that I fhall fhow,
And I will make thee think thy Swan a Crow.

5 A fair affembly; whither
Should they come ?
Serv. Up.

Rom. Whither? to fupper? Serv. To our hufe. ] Romeo had read over the lift of invited guests; but how should he know they were invited to fupper? This comes much more aptly

from the Servant's anfwer, than Romeo's question; and muft undoubtedly be placed to him. WARBURTON.

A

When a man reads a lift of guests, he knows that they are invited to fomething, and, without any extraordinary good fortune, may guefs, to a fupper.

Rom.

Rom. When the devout religion of mine eye
Maintains fuch fafhoods, then turn tears to fires!
And thefe, who, often drown'd, could never die,
Transparent hereticks, be burnt for liars!
One fairer than my love! th' all-feeing Sun
Ne'er faw her match, fince first the world begun.
Ben. Tut! tut! you faw her fair, none elle being
by,

Herself pois'd with herself, in either eye;
But in those crystal scales, let there be weigh'd
Your lady-love against fome other maid,
That I will fhew you, fhining at this feaft,
And she will shew fcant well, that now fhews best.
Rom. I'll go along, no fuch fight to be shewn;
But to rejoice in splendor of mine own.

[Exeunt.

Change to Capulet's House.

Enter Lady Capulet and Nurse.

URSE, where's my daughter? call

La. Cap. her forth to me. Nurfe. Now (by my maiden-head, at twelve Years

NUR

old)

I bade her come; what, lamb! what, lady-bird!
God forbid !-where's this girl? what, Juliet?

6 let there be weigh'd Your lady's love against fome

other maid,] But the comparison was not betwixt the love that Romeo's mistress paid him, and the person of any other young woman; but betwixt Ro

C 2

meo's miftrefs herfelf, and fome
other that fhould be match'd a-
gainst her. The poet therefore
must certainly have wrote;
Your lady-love against fome
other maid.

WARBURTON.

Enter