Note 131 — USURY.[124]
Reading edition
"The dearest friend to me, the kindest man, The best conditioned and unwearied spirit, In doing courtesies; and one in whom The ancient Roman honor more appears, Than any that draws breath in Italy."
This is the Shakespearian description of that Anthony, whom the modern British public, with its new critical lights, calls a "sentimentalist and speculator!"—holding Shylock to be the real hero, and innocent victim of the drama.