Dromio of Ephesus, who for the second time had been sent in search
of his master, at last found him. Antipholus of Ephesus had been
detained at the shop of a goldsmith, Angelo, who was making a chain
for his wife. The chain was not yet completed, but was promised for a
little later. Antipholus returned home, bringing with him as guests
the goldsmith Angelo and a merchant called Balthazar, but when
they reached the house they were refused admittance. No argument or
entreaty would induce the porter or the servants inside to open the
door. They said their master and Dromio were already at home, and
that these must be impostors. Antipholus at last went away in a rage,
saying that he would go and dine somewhere else, where he was treated
with less disdain.
Meanwhile, inside the house, Luciana was not at all pleased with the
way her supposed brother-in-law was behaving to his wife, and when
they found themselves alone, she took him to task about it. Antipholus
of Syracuse again persisted that Adriana was no wife of his; in fact,
he said, he very much preferred Luciana herself. Luciana did not think
it right to listen to such speeches, and went off to fetch her sister,
leaving Antipholus more than ever charmed with her gentle grace,
enchanting beauty, and wise discourse.
While he was musing over this, and thinking it high time that he
should leave Ephesus, which seemed to him inhabited by none but
witches, Angelo the goldsmith came that way, bringing the chain
which Antipholus of Ephesus had ordered as a present for his wife.
Antipholus of Syracuse, to whom he handed it in mistake, of course
knew nothing about it, and declared he had never ordered it; but
Angelo insisted on his keeping it, saying he would come back at five
o’clock for the money.
Antipholus had already sent Dromio to find out if there were any ship
sailing from Ephesus, for he did not want to stay a single night in
such a queer place. He now resolved to go and wait for Dromio in the
market, so that they could get off at the first possible moment.
Angelo the goldsmith was in debt to another merchant, and now the
creditor began to press for his money. Angelo replied that the very
sum he owed was due to him from Antipholus; he expected to receive
the money at five o’clock that day, and if the merchant would walk
down with him to the house, he would discharge the bond. Antipholus of
Ephesus, however, saved them the trouble by walking up at that moment.
Angelo asked him for payment for the chain, which, of course, _this_
Antipholus declared he had never had. Angelo protested that he had
given it him only half an hour before. Antipholus indignantly denied
it.
The merchant creditor now lost patience, thinking Angelo only wished
to escape by some false excuse, and he ordered an officer to arrest
him. Angelo, feeling that his reputation was at stake, then ordered
the officer to arrest Antipholus for not paying him the money for
the chain. To add to the confusion, at that moment up came Dromio of
Syracuse, who, mistaking this wrong Antipholus for his own master,
told him that a ship was just ready to sail, he had got all their
goods on board, and the vessel only waited for them and the skipper.
Antipholus of Ephesus thought this was his own Dromio, and that he
must be losing his senses, but he had no time to debate the matter
now. He bade him hasten home to Adriana and get from her a purse
of ducats, which would serve to bail him from arrest. Dromio did
as he was told. He rushed to the house, stammered out his confused
story, got the purse from Adriana, and was returning with it, when
he happened to meet his own master, Antipholus of Syracuse. To him
he handed the purse. Antipholus was quite unable to understand this
new freak, but not caring to waste time in explanations, asked if any
ship were departing that night. Dromio replied that an hour ago he had
brought him word that the bark _Expedition_ was just ready to sail,
when Antipholus was arrested.
“Here is the money you sent for to deliver you,” he concluded.
“The fellow is distracted, and so am I,” said Antipholus. “We wander
here in illusions. Some blessed power deliver us hence!”
* * * * *
Adriana, with Luciana, hastened to the release of her husband, but
when they found him he said such strange things--declaring that he
had not dined at home, and that he had been locked out of his own
house, while she and Luciana knew quite well that he had dined with
them--that everyone thought he was mad, and he was bound and carried
away home, and put under care of a doctor, his man Dromio being also
treated in the same way.
Not long after this, Angelo and his merchant creditor met Antipholus
of Syracuse, who this time, instead of denying he had had the chain,
at once admitted it. Angelo reproached him with having denied it
before. Antipholus declared he had never done so. The merchant said
they had heard him with their own ears. The end of the matter was that
they all got so angry that they drew their swords and began to fight.
Adriana, coming up at that moment, thought it was her husband who had
got free from his bondage, and called to the others not to hurt him,
he was mad, but to seize him and take away his sword.
Antipholus of Syracuse, seeing that he was likely to be overpowered,
slipped with Dromio for refuge inside a Priory, near which they were
standing. The Abbess refused to give them up, as they had taken
sanctuary there, though Adriana vehemently demanded her husband.
Luciana advised her sister to appeal to the Duke, and as it happened,
the Duke himself now approached, on his way to attend the execution of
the luckless Ægeon, who up to the present had not been able to obtain
the money for his ransom.
Adriana told her story to the Duke, who thereupon commanded that the
Lady Abbess should be summoned to his presence. At that instant a
servant came rushing up in terror to Adriana saying that his master
and Dromio had got loose, and had tied up the doctor, and were beating
the servants.
“Peace, fool! Your master and his man are here,” said Adriana. “What
you report to us is false.”
But the speedy appearance of Antipholus and Dromio of Ephesus showed
that the servant had spoken truth.
“Unless the fear of death makes me doat,” said Ægeon, “I see my son
Antipholus and Dromio.”
[Illustration: “I see my son Antipholus.”]
There was still some further confusion, for this Antipholus had no
knowledge of his father. But when Antipholus of Syracuse came from
the Priory, and the two sets of brothers stood face to face, matters
were soon happily cleared up. To add to the general joy, the good
Abbess turned out to be no other than the wife of Ægeon. There was
no difficulty now about getting ransom for the merchant, and, in
fact, the Duke pardoned his life without accepting the ducats which
Antipholus of Ephesus offered.
Antipholus of Syracuse could now pay his court without rebuke to the
lady who had so charmed his fancy; and Adriana, to whom the Duke had
spoken some plain words, promised to be a less shrewish wife for the
future.
[Illustration: “I see by you I am a sweet-faced youth.”]
Among the gay company none were merrier or more delighted than the
two Dromios. They embraced vigorously, and gazed at each other with
admiration.
“Methinks you are my glass, and not my brother,” said Dromio of
Ephesus. “I see by you I am a sweet-faced youth. Will you walk in to
see their gossiping?”
But each brother was too modest to walk into the house first, so they
settled the difficulty by going in hand in hand, not one before the
other.
[Illustration: THE END]
WELLS GARDNER, DARTON AND CO., LTD.,
3 PATERNOSTER BUILDINGS, LONDON, ENGLAND.