The Works of William Shakspeare - 2 Author:William Shakespeare Subtitle: The Text Formed From an Intirely New Collation of the Old Editions, With the Various Readings, Notes, a Life of the Poet, and a History of the Early English Stage Volume: 2 General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1842 Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and t... more »here may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: If low, an agate very vilely cut: If speaking, why, a vane blown with all winds: If silent, why, a block moved with none. So turns she every man the wrong side out, And never gives to truth and virtue that Which simpleness and merit purchaseth. Urs. Sure, sure, such carping is not commendable. Hero. No; not to be so odd, and from all fashions As Beatrice is, cannot be commendable. But who dare tell her so ? If I should speak, She would mock me into air: O ! she would laugh me Out of myself, press me to death with wit. Therefore let Benedick, like cover'd fire, Consume away in sighs, waste inwardly : It were a better death than die with mocks', Which is as bad as die with tickling. Urs. Yet tell her of it: hear what she will say. Hero. No ; rather I will go to Benedick, And counsel him to fight against his passion: And, truly, I'll devise some honest slanders To stain my cousin with. One doth not know, How much an ill word may empoison liking. Urs. O! do not do your cousin such a wrong. She cannot be so much without true judgment, (Having so swift and excellent a wit, As she is priz'd to have) as to refuse So rare a gentleman as signior Benedick. Hero. He is the only man of Italy, Always excepted my dear Claudio. Urs. I pray you, be not angry with me, madam, Speaking my fancy : signior Benedick, For shape, for bearing, argument, and valour, Goes foremost in report through Italy. ...« less