And as he fell, did Romeo turn to fly;
This is the truth, or let Benvolio suffer.

Cap. He is a kinsman to the Mountague,
Affection makes him false; he speaks not true;
I beg for justice; justice, gracious prince;
Romeo slew Tibalt, Romeo must not live.
Prin. Romeo slew him, he slew Mercutio;
Who now the price of his dear blood doth owe?
Mount. Romeo but took the forfeit life of Tibalt.
Prin. And we for that offence do banish him.
I have an int'rest in your heady brawls,
My blood doth flow from brave Mercutio's wounds.
But I'll amerce you with so strong a fine,

That you shall all repent my loss in him,
I will be deaf to pleading and excuse,
Nor tears nor prayers shall purchase our repeal
Therefore use none, let Romeo be gone,
Else when he is found, that hour is his last.
Bear hence this body, and attend our will:
Mercy but murders, pardoning those that kill.

Jul.

SCENE IV.

An Apartment in CAPULET's House.

Enter JULIET alone.

[Exeunt

ALLOP apace, you fiery-footed steeds.
To Phoebus' mansion; such a waggoner,

As Phaeton, would whip you to the West,
And bring in cloudy night immediately.

Spread thy close curtain, love-performing night,
That the run-away's eyes may wink; and Romeo
Leap to these arms, unțalkt of and unseen.

Come night, come Romeo! come thou day in night
For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night,
Whiter than 'snow upon the raven's back:
Give me my Romeo, Night, and when he dies,
Take him and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of heav'n so fine,
That all the world will be in love with night,
And pay no worship to the garish sun :-
Oh, I have bought the mansion of a love,

But

But not posess'd it; so tedious is the day,
As is the night before the festival,
To an impatient child that hath new robes,
And may not wear them.

Oh, here comes my nurse!

Enter NURSE.

And she brings news, and every tongue that speaks
But Romeo's name, speaks heav'nly eloquence;
Now, nurse, what news?

Why dost thou wring thy hands?

Nurse. Ah, welladay he's dead, he's dead, he's dead! We are undone, lady, we are undone.

Jul. Can heav'n be so envious?

Nurse, Romeo can,

Though heav'n cannot.

Oh Romeo! Romeo!

Jul. What devil art thou that does torment me thus ?
This torture should be roar'd in dismal hell.

Hath Romeo slain himself? say thou but ay,
And that bare little word shall poison more
Than the earth-darting eye of cockatrice.

Nurse. I saw the wound, I saw it with mine eyes,
Here on his manly breast.—A piteous coarse,
A bloody piteous coarse, pale, pale as ashes,

I swooned at the sight.

Jul. Oh break my heart!poor bankrupt, break at once !

To prison, eyes! ne'er look on liberty;

Vile earth to earth resign, and motion here,
And thou and Romeo press one heavy brier!
Nurse. Oh Tibalt, Tibalt, the best friend I had;
That ever I should leave to see thee dead!
Jul. What storm is this that blows so contrary?
Is Romeo slaughter'd? and is Tibalt dead?
Nurse. Tibalt is dead, and Romeo banished.
Romeo that kill'd him, he is banished.

Jul. Oh heav'n! did Romeo's hand shed Tibalt's blood?
Nurse. It did, it did, alas the day! it did.

Jul. Oh nature! what hadst thou to do in hell,

When thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend

In mortal paradise of such sweet flesh? Oh that deceit

should dwell

In such a gorgeous palace!

Nurse. There is no trust,

No

No faith, no honesty in men; all perjur'd;
Shame come to Romeo!

Jul. Blister'd be thy tongue,

For such a wish; he was not born to shame,
Upon his brow shame is asham'd to sit:

For 'tis a throne where honour may be crown'd,
Sole monarch of the universal earth.

Oh what a wretch was I to chide him so?

Nurse. Will you speak well of him, that kill'd your

cousin?

Jul. Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?
Ah, poor my lord, what tongue shall smooth thy name,
When I thy three hours wife have mangled it?
Back foolish tears, back to your native spring:
Your tributary drops belong to woe,
Which you, mistaking, offer up to joy.

My husband lives that Tibalt would have slain,
And Tibalt's dead that would have kill'd my husband;

All this is comfort; wherefore weep I then?

Some word there was worser than Tibalt's death
That murder'd me; I would forget it fain,

But oh it presses to my memory,

Like damned guilty deeds to sinners minds;
Tibalt is dead, and Romeo banished,

That banished, that one word banished,

Hath slain ten thousand Tibalt's: in that word
Is father, mother, Tibalt, Romeo, Juliet,
All slain, all dead !--Romeo is banished!
Where is my father, and my mother, nurse?

Nurse. Weeping and wailing over Tibalt's corpse:
Will you go to them? I will bring you thither.

[flow Jul. Wash they his wounds with tears! my eyes shall

When theirs are dry, for Romeo's banishment.
Nurse. Hie to your chamber, I'll find Romeo

To comfort you. I wot well where he is.
Hark ye, your Romeo will be here at night;
I'll to him, he is hid at Laurence's cell.

Jul. Oh find him, give this ring to my true lord,
And bid him come to take his last farewel.

[Exeunt.

SCENE

SCENE V.

The MONASTERY.

Enter Friar LAWRENCE and ROMEO.

Fri. ROMEO, come forth; come forth, thou fearful

man,

Affliction is enamour'd of thy parts;
And thou art wedded to calamity:

Rom. Father, what news? what is the prince's doom? What sorrow craves acquaintance at my hand,

That I yet know not?

Is

Fri. Too Familiar

my

dear son with such sour company,

I bring thee tidings of the prince's doom.

Rom. What less than death can be the prince's doom? Fri. A gentlerjudgment vanish'd from his lips, Not body's death, but body's banishment.

Rom. Ha! banishment? be merciful, say death;
For exile hath more terror in his look,

Much more than death; do not say banishment;
Tis death mis-term'd calling death banishment;
Thou cut'st my head off with a golden ax,
And smil'st upon the stroke that murders me.
Fri. O deadly sin! O rude unthankfulness!
Thy fault our law calls death; but the kind prince,
Taking thy part, hath push'd aside the law,
And turn'd that black word death to banishment,
This is dear mercy, and thou seest it not.

Rom. "Tistorture, and not mercy: heav'n is here
Where Juliet lives. There's more felicity
In carrion-flies, than Romeo: they may seize
On the white wonder of dear Juliet's hand,
And steal immortal blessings from her lips;
But Romeo may not, he is banished!
Oh father, hast thou no strong poison mixt,
Nor sharp-ground knife, no present means of death,
But banishment to torture me withal.

Fri. Fond mad-man, hear me speak,

I'll give thee armour to bear of that word,
Adversity's sweet milk, philosophy,
F

VOL. I.

To

To comfort thee tho' thou art banished.
Rom. Yet banished? hang up philosophy:
Unless philosophy can make a Juliet,

It helps not, it prevails not; talk no more-
Fri. Let me dispute with thee of thy estate.

Rom. Thou canst not speak of what thou dost not feel:
Wert thou as young as I, Juliet thy love,
An hour but married, Tibalt murdered:
Doting like me, and like me banished;

Then might'st thou speak, then mightst thou tear thy hair, And fall upon the ground as I do now,

Taking the measure of an unmade grave.

[Throwing himself upon the ground. Fri. Arise, one knocks; good Romeo, hide thyself.

[Knock within.

Rom. Not I; unless the breath of heart-sick groans,
Mist-like, infold me from the search of eyes.
Fri. Hark, how they knock-Romeo arise,
Who's there?

Thou wilt be taken-stay a while,-stand up;
Run to my study-By and by-God's will;
What wilfulness is this!-I come, I come.

[Knocks.

[Knocks.

Who knocks so hard? whence come you? what's your

will?

Nurse. (within.) Let me come in, and you shall know

Nurse. Oh holy Friar, oh tell me, holy Friar,

Where is my lady's lord? where's Romeo?

Fri. There, on the ground, with his own tears made

drunk.

Nurse. O he is even in my mistres's case,

Just in her case: Oh Juliet, Juliet!

Rom. Speak'st thou of Juliet! how is it with her?

Since I have stain'd the childhood of our joy

With blood.

Where is she? how does she? what says she?

Nurse. Oh, she says nothing, Sir, but weeps and weeps, And now falls on her bed, and then starts up, And Tibalt cries, and then on Romeo calls,

And