Chapter: SCENE III. 

_A monastery._

  _Enter _Duke_ and FRIAR THOMAS._

_Duke._ No, holy father; throw away that thought;
Believe not that the dribbling dart of love
Can pierce a complete bosom. Why I desire thee
To give me secret harbour, hath a purpose
More grave and wrinkled than the aims and ends                       5
Of burning youth.

_Fri. T._    May your grace speak of it?

_Duke._ My holy sir, none better knows than you
How I have ever loved the life removed,
And held in idle price to haunt assemblies
Where youth, and cost, and witless bravery keeps.                   10
I have deliver'd to Lord Angelo,
A man of stricture and firm abstinence,
My absolute power and place here in Vienna,
And he supposes me travell'd to Poland;
For so I have strew'd it in the common ear,                         15
And so it is received. Now, pious sir,
You will demand of me why I do this?

_Fri. T._ Gladly, my lord.

_Duke._ We have strict statutes and most biting laws,
The needful bits and curbs to headstrong weeds,                     20
Which for this fourteen years we have let slip;
Even like an o'ergrown lion in a cave,
That goes not out to prey. Now, as fond fathers,
Having bound up the threatening twigs of birch,
Only to stick it in their children's sight                          25
For terror, not to use, in time the rod
Becomes more mock'd than fear'd; so our decrees.
Dead to infliction, to themselves are dead;
And liberty plucks justice by the nose;
The baby beats the nurse, and quite athwart                         30
Goes all decorum.

_Fri. T._    It rested in your Grace
To unloose this tied-up justice when you pleased:
And it in you more dreadful would have seem'd
Than in Lord Angelo.

_Duke._            I do fear, too dreadful:
Sith 'twas my fault to give the people scope,                       35
'Twould be my tyranny to strike and gall them
For what I bid them do: for we bid this be done,
When evil deeds have their permissive pass,
And not the punishment. Therefore, indeed, my father,
I have on Angelo imposed the office;                                40
Who may, in the ambush of my name, strike home,
And yet my nature never in the fight
To do in slander. And to behold his sway,
I will, as 'twere a brother of your order,
Visit both prince and people: therefore, I prithee,                 45
Supply me with the habit, and instruct me
How I may formally in person bear me
Like a true friar. More reasons for this action
At our more leisure shall I render you;
Only, this one: Lord Angelo is precise;                             50
Stands at a guard with envy; scarce confesses
That his blood flows, or that his appetite
Is more to bread than stone: hence shall we see,
If power change purpose, what our seemers be.    [_Exeunt._


  NOTES: I, 3.

  SCENE III.] SCENA QUARTA Ff. SCENE VII. Pope.
  3: _bosom_] _breast_ Pope.
  10: _and witless_] F2 F3 F4. _witless_ F1. _with witless_ Edd. conj.
  _keeps_] _keep_ Hammer.
  12: _stricture_] _strictness_ Davenant's version. _strict ure_
    Warburton.
  15: _For_] _Far_ F2.
  20: _to_] F1. _for_ F2 F3 F4.
  _weeds_] Ff. _steeds_ Theobald. _wills_ S. Walker conj.
  21: _this_] _these_ Theobald.
  _fourteen_] _nineteen_ Theobald.
  _slip_] Ff. _sleep_ Theobald (after Davenant).
  25: _to_] _do_ Dent. MS.
  26: _terror_] F1. _errour_ F2 F3 F4.
  26, 27: _the rod Becomes more ... decrees_] Pope (after Davenant).
    _the rod More ... decrees_ Ff. _the rod's More ... most just
    decrees_ Collier MS.
  27: _mock'd_] _markt_ Davenant's version.
  34: _do_] om. Pope.
  37: _be done_] om. Pope.
  39: _the_] _their_ Dyce conj.
  _indeed_] om. Pope.
  42, 43: _fight To do in slander_] _sight To do in slander_ Pope.
    _fight So do in slander_ Theobald. _sight To do it slander_ Hanmer.
    _sight, So doing slander'd_ Johnson conj.
    _sight To draw on slander_ Collier MS.
    _right To do him slander_ Singer conj.
    _light To do it slander_ Dyce conj.
    _fight To do me slander_ Halliwell.
    _win the fight To die in slander_ Staunton conj.
  _never ... slander_] _ever in the fight To dole in slander_
    Jackson conj.
  43: _And_] om. Pope.
  45: _I_] om. Pope.
  47: _in person bear me_] Capell. _in person beare_ Ff.
    _my person bear_ Pope.
  49: _our_] F1. _your_ F2 F3 F4.

 Meanwhile, the Duke has gone to visit a Friar in his cell in Vienna. We catch the two men in mid-conversation. The Duke explains that he wants to hide out at the local monastery because he wants to spy on Angelo, who thinks the Duke has travelled to Poland. The Duke is adamant that he's NOT seeking refuge at the monastery as a heartbroken lover because love is for wimps. The Duke says something weird like "I order you to ask me why I want to spy on Angelo." The Friar complies and says something like "OK, explain yourself." Duke Vincentio admits that for the past fourteen years, he's been pretty lax about enforcing Vienna's laws. Naturally, the people are out of control, like "headstrong horses" that are never curbed. "They're also like naughty children," says the Duke, who compares himself to a wimpy parent who only ever threatens to beat his kids with "twigs of birch" but never gives anyone a spanking. The Friar points out that the Duke has the authority to start enforcing Vienna's laws and would probably be a lot better at it than Angelo. But, the Duke doesn't want to be the bad guy--he'd rather let Angelo do the dirty work than look like a tyrant in the eyes of his people. Plus, reasons the Duke, he would look like a total hypocrite if he started enforcing rules out of the clear blue sky. Duke Vincentio admits that he's a little nervous about Angelo, who is pretty strict and also claims not to have any sexual desire, which makes the Duke suspicious enough to want to keep an eye on things.

