LOVE'S LABOUR'S loft

DRAMATIS

PERSON Æ.

FERDINAND, King of Na-Costard, a clown.

Moth, page to Don Adriano de
Armado.

SCENE, the King of Navarre's palace, and the country

near it.

ACTI. SCENE I..

The palace.

Enter the King, Biron, Longaville, and Dumain..

King.

L

ET fame, that all hunt after in their lives,.
Live registred upon our brazen tombst;
When, fpight of cormorant devouring
time,

Th' endeavour of this present breath may buy

That honour which shall 'bate his fcythe's keen edge,,
And make us heirs of all eternity.

Therefore, brave conquerors! for so you are,
That war against your own affections,

In this play are to be perceived several strokes of Shakespear's pen, but the whole ought by no means to pafs for the work of it.

brazen tombs;

And then grace us in the disgrace of death :.

When, fpight of, &c.

And the huge army of the world's defires;
Our late edict fhall ftrongly ftand in force.
Navarre shall be the wonder of the world;
Our court shall be a little academy,
Still and contemplative in living arts.
You three, Biron, Dumain, and Longaville,
Have fworn for three years' term to live with me,
My fellow-fcholars; and to keep thofe ftatutes,
That are recorded in this schedule here.

Your oaths are pass'd, and now fubfcribe your names :
That his own hand may ftrike his honour down,
That violates the fmalleft branch herein:

If you are arm'd to do as fworn to do,

Subscribe to your deep oaths, and keep them too.
Long. I am refolv'd; 'tis but a three years' fast:
The mind fhall banquet tho' the body pine;
Fat paunches have lean pates; and dainty bits
Make rich the ribs, but bankerout the wits.

Dum. My loving Lord, Dumain is mortify'd:
The groffer manner of these world's delights
He throws upon the grofs world's bafer flaves:
To love, to wealth, to pomp, I pine and die;
With all these living in philofophy.

Biron. I can but fay their proteftation over,
So much (dear Liege) I have already fworn,
That is, to live and study here three years.
But there are other strict obfervances :
As, not to fee a woman in that term;
Which I hope well is not inrolled there:
And one day in a week to touch no food,
And but one meal on every day befide;
The which I hope is not inrolled there :
And then to sleep but three hours in the night,
And not be feen to wink of all the day;
(When I was wont to think no harm all night,
And make a dark night too of half the day);
Which I hope well is not inrolled there.
O, thefe are barren tasks, too hard to keep;
Not to fee ladies, ftudy, faft, not fleep.

King. Your oath is pafs'd to pafs away from thefe.
Biran. Let me fay, No, my Liege, an' if you please;

I only fwore to ftudy with your Grace,

And ftay here in your court for three years' space. Long. You fwore to that, Biron, and to the reft. Biron. By yea and nay, Sir, then I swore in jeit. What is the end of ftudy? let me know.

King, Why, that to know, which elfe we should not know.

Biron. Things hid and barr'd (you mean) from com-
mon fenfe.

King. Ay, that is ftudy's god-like recompence.
Biron. Come on then, I will fwear to study fo,
To know the thing I am forbid to know;
As thus; to study where I well may dine,
When I to feaft exprefsly am forbid;
Or ftudy where to meet fome mistress fine,
When mistreffes from common fenfe are hid;
Or, having fworn too hard-a-keeping oath,
Study to break it, and not break my troth.
If ftudy's gain be this, and this be fo,
Study knows that which yet it doth not know :
Swear me to this, and I will ne'er fay, No.

King. These be the ftops that hinder ftudy quite,
And train our intellects to vain delight.

Biron. Why, all delights are vain ; but that most vain, Which, with pain purchas'd, doth inherit pain; As, painfully to pore upon a book,

To feek the light of truth; while truth the while
Doth falfely blind the eye-fight of his look:

Light, feeking light, doth light of light beguile;
So, ere you find where light in darkness lies,
Your light grows dark by lofing of your eyes.
Study me how to please the eye indeed,
By fixing it upon a fairer eye;

Who dazzling fo, that eye fhall be his heed,
And give him light, that it was blinded by.
Study is like the heaven's glorious fun,

That will not be deep-fearch'd with faucy looks;
Small have continual plodders ever won,
Save bafe authority from others' books.
Thefe earthly godfathers of heaven's lights
That give a name to every fixed star,

Have no more profit of their fhining nights,

Than thofe that walk, and wot not what they are. "Too much to know, is to know nought: but feign; "And every godfather can give a name."

King. How well he's read, to reafon against reading! Dum. Proceeded well, to ftop all good proceeding. Long. He weeds the corn, and ftill let's grow the weeding.

Biron. The fpring is near when green geefe are abreeding.

Dum. How follows that?

Biron. Fit in his place and time.
Dum. In reafon nothing.

Biron. Something then in rhime.

Long. Biron is like an envious fneaping froft, That bites the firft-born infants of the fpring.

Biron. Well; fay, I am; why fhould proud fummer boaft,

Before the birds have any caufe to fing?
Why should I joy in an abortive birth?
At Christmas I no more defire a rofe,
Than with a fnow in May's new-fangled shows:
But like of each thing that in feason grows.
So you, to study now it is too late,

Climb o'er the houfe t'unlock the little gate.

King. Well, fit you out-Go-home, Biron: adieu! Biron. No, my good Lord, I've fworn to ftay with

you.

And though I have for barbarism spoke more,
Than for that angel knowledge you can fay;
Yet confident I'll keep what I have fwore,

And 'bide the penance of each three years' day.
Give me the paper, let me read the fame;
And to the ftrict'ft decrees I'll write my name.
King. How well this yielding refcues thee from

fhame!

Biron. Item, That no woman fhall come within a

mile of my court.

[reading.

Hath this been proclaimed?

Long. Four days ago.

Biron. Let's fee the penalty.

On pain of losing her tongue.

[reading.

VOL. II.

N

Caft. The matter is to me, Sir, as concerning Ja

quenetta,

The manner of it is, I was taken in the manner.
Biron. In what manner?

Coft. In manner and form, following, Sir; all thofe three. I was feen with her in the manor-houfe, fitting with her upon the form, and taken following her into the park; which, put together, is, in manner and form following. Now, Sir, for the manner: it is the manner of a man to fpeak to a woman; for the form, in fome form.

Biron. For the following, Sir?

Coft. As it fhall follow in my correction; and God defend the right!

King. Will you hear the letter with attention?
Biron. As we would hear an oracle.

Coft. Such is the fimplicity of man to hearken after the flesh.

King. [reads.] Great deputy, the welkin's vicegerent, and fole dominator of Navarre, my foul's earth's God, and body's foftering patron

Coft. Not a word of Costard yet.

King. So it is

Coft. It may be fo; but if he fay it is fo, he is, in telling true, but, fo, fo.

King. Peace

Coft. Be to me, and every man that dares not fight! King. No words

Coft. Of other mens fecrets, I beseech you.

King. So it is, besieged with fable-coloured melancholy, I did commend the black oppreffing humour to the most wholesome phyfic of thy bealth-giving air; and as I am a gentleman, betook myself to walk. The time, when? about the fixth hour, when beafts moft graze, birds beft peck, and men fit down to that nourishment which is call'd fupper fo much for the time, when. Now for the ground, which? which, I mean, I walk'd upon; it is ycleped, thy park. Then for the place, where? where, I mean, I did encounter that obfcene and most prepofterous event, that draweth from my for-white pen the eban-colour'd ink, which here thou vieweft, beholdeft, furveyeft, or feeft. But to the place, where? it standeth north-north-eaft and by east from