The Comedy of Errors | Page 3

characters may be used to?indicate hypertext links; OR
[*] The etext may be readily converted by the reader at
no expense into plain ASCII, EBCDIC or equivalent form by the program that displays the etext (as is the case, for instance, with most word processors); OR
[*] You provide, or agree to also provide on request at
no additional cost, fee or expense, a copy of the etext in its original plain ASCII form (or in EBCDIC or other equivalent proprietary form).
[2] Honor the etext refund and replacement provisions of this
"Small Print!" statement.
[3] Pay a trademark license fee to the Project of 20% of the
net profits you derive calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. If you don't derive profits, no royalty is due. Royalties are payable to "Project Gutenberg Association/Carnegie-Mellon University" within the 60 days following each?date you prepare (or were legally required to prepare) your annual (or equivalent periodic) tax return.
WHAT IF YOU *WANT* TO SEND MONEY EVEN IF YOU DON'T HAVE TO? The Project gratefully accepts contributions in money, time, scanning machines, OCR software, public domain etexts, royalty free copyright licenses, and every other sort of contribution you can think of. Money should be paid to "Project Gutenberg Association / Carnegie-Mellon University".
*END*THE SMALL PRINT! FOR PUBLIC DOMAIN ETEXTS*Ver.04.29.93*END*
This etext was prepared by the PG Shakespeare Team,?a team of about twenty Project Gutenberg volunteers.
THE COMEDY OF ERRORS
by William Shakespeare
PERSONS REPRESENTED.
SOLINUS, Duke of Ephesus.?AEGEON, a Merchant of Syracuse.?ANTIPHOLUS OF EPHESUS, Twin brothers and sons to Aegion and ANTIPHOLUS OF SYRACUSE, and Aemelia, but unknown to each other.
DROMIO OF EPHESUS, Twin brothers, and attendants on?DROMIO OF SYRACUSE, the two Antipholuses.
BALTHAZAR, a Merchant.?ANGELO, a Goldsmith.?A MERCHANT, friend to Antipholus of Syracuse.?PINCH, a Schoolmaster and a Conjurer.
AEMILIA, Wife to Aegeon, an Abbess at Ephesus.?ADRIANA, Wife to Antipholus of Ephesus.?LUCIANA, her Sister.?LUCE, her Servant.
A COURTEZAN?Gaoler, Officers, Attendants
SCENE: Ephesus
THE COMEDY OF ERRORS
ACT I.
SCENE 1. A hall in the DUKE'S palace.
[Enter the DUKE, AEGEON, GAOLER, OFFICERS, and other ATTENDANTS.]
AEGEON.?Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall,?And, by the doom of death, end woes and all.
DUKE.?Merchant of Syracuse, plead no more;?I am not partial to infringe our laws:?The enmity and discord which of late?Sprung from the rancorous outrage of your duke?To merchants, our well-dealing countrymen,--?Who, wanting guilders to redeem their lives,?Have seal'd his rigorous statutes with their bloods,--?Excludes all pity from our threat'ning looks.?For, since the mortal and intestine jars?'Twixt thy seditious countrymen and us,?It hath in solemn synods been decreed,?Both by the Syracusians and ourselves,?To admit no traffic to our adverse towns;?Nay, more,?If any born at Ephesus be seen?At any Syracusian marts and fairs;--?Again, if any Syracusian born?Come to the bay of Ephesus, he dies,?His goods confiscate to the Duke's dispose;?Unless a thousand marks be levied,?To quit the penalty and to ransom him.--?Thy substance, valued at the highest rate,?Cannot amount unto a hundred marks:?Therefore by law thou art condemn'd to die.
AEGEON.?Yet this my comfort,--when your words are done,?My woes end likewise with the evening sun.
DUKE.?Well, Syracusan, say, in brief, the cause?Why thou departedst from thy native home,?And for what cause thou cam'st to Ephesus.
AEGEON.?A heavier task could not have been impos'd?Than I to speak my griefs unspeakable!?Yet, that the world may witness that my end?Was wrought by nature, not by vile offence,?I'll utter what my sorrow gives me leave.?In Syracuse was I born; and wed?Unto a woman, happy but for me,?And by me too, had not our hap been bad.?With her I liv'd in joy; our wealth increas'd?By prosperous voyages I often made?To Epidamnum, till my factor's death,?And he,--great care of goods at random left,--?Drew me from kind embracements of my spouse:?From whom my absence was not six months old,?Before herself,--almost at fainting under?The pleasing punishment that women bear,--?Had made provision for her following me,?And soon and safe arrived where I was.?There had she not been long but she became?A joyful mother of two goodly sons;?And, which was strange, the one so like the other?As could not be disdnguish'd but by names.?That very hour, and in the self-same inn,?A mean woman was delivered?Of such a burden, male twins, both alike:?Those,--for their parents were exceeding poor,--?I bought, and brought up to attend my sons.?My wife, not meanly proud of two such boys,?Made daily motions for our home return:?Unwilling I agreed; alas! too soon!?We came aboard:?A league from Epidamnum had we sail'd?Before the always-wind-obeying deep?Gave any tragic instance of our harm;?But longer did we not retain much hope:?For what obscured light the heavens did grant?Did but convey unto our fearful minds?A doubtful warrant of immediate death;?Which though myself would gladly have embrac'd,?Yet the incessant weepings of my wife,?Weeping before for what she saw must come,?And piteous plainings of the pretty babes,?That mourn'd for fashion, ignorant what to fear,?Forc'd me to seek delays for them and me.?And this it was,--for other means was none.--?The sailors sought for safety by