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What is infirm from your found parts shall fly,
Health shall live free, and fickness freely die.
King. Upon thy certainty and confidence,
What dar'ft thou venture?

Hel. Tax of impudence,

A strumpet's boldness, a divulged shame
Traduc'd by odious ballads: my maiden's name
Sear'd otherwise, no worse of worst extended;
With vilest torture let my life be ended.

King. Methinks, in thee some blessed Spirit doth

fpeak

His powerful found, within an organ weak;
And what impossibility would flay

In common sense, sense saves another way.
Thy life is dear; for all that life can rate
Worth name of life, in thee hath estimate:
(9) Youth, beauty, wisdom, courage, virtue, all
That happiness and prime can happy call;
Thou this to hazard, needs must intimate.
Skill infinite, or monstrous desperate..
Sweet practifer, thy physick I will try;
That ministers thine own death, if I die.
Hel. If I break time, or flinch in property
Of what I spoke, unpitied let me die,
And well deserv'd! Not helping, death's my fee;
But if I help, what do you promise me?

(9) Youth, beauty, wisdom, courage, all, &c.] This Verse is too short by a Foot; and apparently some Dissyllable is drop'd out by Mischance. Mr. Warburton concurr'd with me in Conjecture to supply the Verse thus :

Youth, beauty, wisdom, courage, virtue, all, &c. Helena, had laid a particular Stress on her maiden Reputation; and the King afterwards, when he comes to speak of her to Bertram, fays,

If she be

All that is virtuous, (Save, What thou diflik'st,

A poor Physician's Daughter ;) thou diflik'st

Of Virtue for ber name :

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King. (10) Make thy demand.
Hel. But will you make it even ?

King. Ay, by my scepter, and my hopes of heaven. Hel. Then shalt thou give me, with thy kingly hand, What Husband in thy power I will command. Exempted be from me the arrogance

To chuse from forth the royal blood of France;
My low and humble name to propagate
With any branch or image of thy state :
But fuch a one thy vassal, whom I know
Is free for me to ask, thee to beslow.

King. Here is my Hand, the premises observ'd,
Thy will by my performance shall be serv'd :
So, make the choice of thine own time; for I,
Thy resolv'd Patient, on thee still rely.
More should I question thee, and more I must,
(Tho' more to know, could not be more to trust:)
From whence thou cam'st, how tended on,- but rest
Unquestion'd welcome, and undoubted blest.
Give me fome help here, hoa! if thou proceed
As high as word, my deed shall match thy deed.

Count.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to Roufillon.

Enter Countess and Clown.

COME on, Sir;

; I shall now put you to the

height of your breeding.

Clown. I will shew myself highly fed, and lowly

taught; I know, my business is but to the court.

(10) King. Make thy Demand.

Hel. But will you make it even ?

King. Ay, by my Scepter, and my hopes of help.] The King could have but a very flight Hope of Help from her, scarce enough to swear by: and therefore Helen might suspect, he meant to equivocate with her. Besides, observe, the greatest Part of the Scene is strictly in Rhyme : and there is no Shadow of Reason why it should be interrupted here. I rather imagine, the Poet wrote;

Ay, by my Scepter, and my Hopes of Heaven. Dr. Thirlby.
Count.

Count. But to the court? why, what place make you fpecial, when you put off that with such contempt; but to the court !

Clo. Truly, Madam, if God have lent a man any manners, he may easily put it off at court: he that cannot make a leg, put off's cap, kiss his hand, and fay nothing, has neither leg, hand, lip, nor cap; and indeed, fuch a fel'ow, to say precisely, were not for the court: but for me, I have an answer will serve all men.

Count. Marry, that's a bountiful answer that fits all questions.

Ch. It is like a barber's chair, that fits all buttocks; the pin buttock, the quatch-buttock, the brawn buttock, or any buttock.

Count. Will your answer serve fit to all questions? Clo. As fit as ten groats is for the hand of an attorney, as your French crown for your taffaty punk, as Tib's rush for Tom's fore-finger, as a pancake for Shrove-Tuefday, a morris for May-day, as the nail to his hole, the cuckold to his horn, as a scolding quean to a wrangling knave, as the nun's lip to the friar's mouth; nay, as the pudding to his skin.

Count. Have you, I say, an answer of such fitness for all questions?

Clo. From below your duke, to beneath your conftab'e, it will fit any question.

Count. It must be an answer of most monstrous fize, that must fit all demands.

Clo. But a trifle neither, in good faith, if the learned should speak truth of it: here it is, and all that belongs to't. Ask me, if I am a courtier; - it shall do you no harm to learn.

Count. To be young again, if we could: I will be a fool in a question, hoping to be the wiser by your answer. I pray you, Sir, are you a courtier ?

Clo. O lord, Sir

there's a simple putting off:

more, more, a hundred of them.

Count. Sir, I am a poor friend of yours, that loves

you.

Clo. O lord, Sir r- thick, thick, spare not me.

B 4

Count.

Count. I think, Sir, you can eat none of this homely

meat.

Clo. O lord, Sir

you.

nay, put me to't, I warrant

Count. You were lately whipp'd, Sir, as I think.
Clo. O lord, Sir - spare not me.

Count. Do you cry, O lord, Sir, at your whipping, and spare not me? indeed, your O lord, Sir, is very sequent to your whipping: you would answer very well to a whipping, if you were but bound to't.

Clo. I ne'er had worse luck in my life, in my-0 lord, Sir; I see, things may serve long, but not serve

ever.

Count. I play the noble huswife with the time, to entertain it fo merrily with a fool.

Clo. O lord, Sir-why, there't serves well again. Count. An end, Sir; to your business: give Helen this, And urge her to a present answer back. Commend me to my kinsmen, and my fon: This is not much.

Clo. Not much commendation to them?

Count. Not much imployment for you, you understand me.

Clo. Most fruitfully, I am there before my legs.
Count. Hafte you again.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to the Court of France.

and we

Enter Bertram, Lafeu, and Parolles. Laf. (11) THEY say, miracles are past; have our philosophical persons to make modern, and familiar, things supernatural and causeless.

(11) They Say Miracles are past, and we have our Philofophical Perfons to make modern and familiar things fupernatural and caufelefs.] This, as it has hitherto been pointed, is directly opposite to our Poet's, and his Speaker's Meaning. As I have stop'd it, the Sense quadrates with the Context: and, furely, it is one unalterable Property of Philosophy, to make seeming strange and preternatural Phanomena familiar, and reduceable to Cause and Reason.

Hence

Hence is it, that we make trifles of terrors; ensconsing ourselves into seeming knowledge, when we should fubmit ourselves to an unknown fear.

Par. Why, 'tis the rareft argument of wonder that

hath shot out in our later times.

Ber. And fo 'tis.

Laf. To be relinquish'd of the artists

Par. So I say, both of Galen and Paracelsus.
Laf. Of all the learned and authentick Fellows

Par. Right, so I fay.

Laf. That gave him out incurable,

Par. Why, there 'tis, so say I too.

Laf. Not to be help'd,

Par. Right, as 'twere a man afsur'd of an
Laf. Uncertain life, and sure death, -

Par. Just, you say well: fo would I have said.
Laf. I may truly say, it is a novelty to the world.
Par. It is indeed, if you will have it in shewing, you

shall read it in, what do you call there

Laf. A shewing of a heav'nly effect in an earthly actor. Par. That's it, I would have said the very fame.

Laf. Why, your dolphin is not lustier: for me, I

speak in respect

Par. Nay, 'tis strange, 'tis very strange, that is the brief and the tedious of it; and he's of a most facinerious spirit, that will not acknowledge it to be theLaf. Very hand of heav'n.

Par. Ay, fo I fay...

Laf. In a most weak

Par. And debile minifter, great power, great transcendence; which should, indeed, give us a farther use to be made than alone the recov'ry of the King; as to beLaf. Generally thankful.

Enter King, Helena, and attendants.

Par. I would have faid it, you said well: here comes the King.

Laf. Luftick, as the Dutchman says: I'll like a Maid the better, while I have a tooth in my head: why, he's able to lead her a Corranto.

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