ACT I
SCENE I. Before LEONATO'S house.
Enter LEONATO, HERO, and BEATRICE, with a Messenger
LEONATO
I learn in this letter that Don Peter of Arragon
comes this night to Messina.Messenger
He is very near by this: he was not three leagues off
when I left him.LEONATO
How many gentlemen have you lost in this action?
Messenger
But few of any sort, and none of name.
LEONATO
A victory is twice itself when the achiever brings
home full numbers. I find here that Don Peter hath
bestowed much honour on a young Florentine called Claudio.Messenger
Much deserved on his part and equally remembered by
Don Pedro: he hath borne himself beyond the
promise of his age, doing, in the figure of a lamb,
the feats of a lion: he hath indeed better
bettered expectation than you must expect of me to
tell you how.LEONATO
He hath an uncle here in Messina will be very much
glad of it.Messenger
I have already delivered him letters, and there
appears much joy in him; even so much that joy could
not show itself modest enough without a badge of
bitterness.LEONATO
Did he break out into tears?
Messenger
In great measure.
LEONATO
A kind overflow of kindness: there are no faces
truer than those that are so washed. How much
better is it to weep at joy than to joy at weeping!BEATRICE
I pray you, is Signior Mountanto returned from the
wars or no?Messenger
I know none of that name, lady: there was none such
in the army of any sort.LEONATO
What is he that you ask for, niece?
HERO
My cousin means Signior Benedick of Padua.
Messenger
O, he's returned; and as pleasant as ever he was.
BEATRICE
He set up his bills here in Messina and challenged
Cupid at the flight; and my uncle's fool, reading
the challenge, subscribed for Cupid, and challenged
him at the bird-bolt. I pray you, how many hath he
killed and eaten in these wars? But how many hath
he killed? for indeed I promised to eat all of his killing.
YOU ARE READING
Much Ado About Nothing
RomanceIt is the complete un-abridged version of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing