p. 286. p. 288. mistress was' an obvious misprint, probably caused by the use of M. which stood in old MS. for both master and mistress.' 6 used for deny,' and even for denial.' "To give his censure": :- i. e., his judgment; — the "I'd set my ten commandments," &c.: The folio has, "I could set," &c.; the superfluous word having been caught from the line above. The quarto has, “Ide set," &c. "She shall not strike Dame Eleanor," &c.:- For this characteristic scene we are indebted entirely to the poet. Eleanor and Margaret never met. 66 her fury needs no spurs": The folio has, "her fume needs," &c. The ingenious correction, by which sense and rhythm are restored to the line by the least possible change, is Mr. Dyce's. The second folio attained only the latter by reading "her fume can need no spurs," which has hitherto been retained, in spite of its violence to the old text. 66 She'll gallop fast enough": - The folio has, "farre enough." The misprint was corrected by Pope, and in Mr. Collier's folio of 1632. "I humbly thank," &c.:· - Before this reply of Somerset's, Theobald inserted, from the old play, a brief speech by the King, "Then be it so. My Lord of Somerset, We make your Grace Regent over the French," because without them the King has not confirmed Gloster's decision, and Somerset has nothing to be thankful for. Malone, Capell, and Collier leave out the lines, supposing that the King assents by a nod or look; and Mr. Knight also omits them, because "the King has given the power of deciding to Gloster." Mr. Dyce restores them, because the King has not given the power of deciding to Gloster," but merely puts a question to him. But the terms of that question clearly imply that Gloster is to decide the matter; and he pronounces doom, with the mere ceremonious expression of deference, "if I may judge." And that his judgment was considered final, is plain; for in the same breath with his appointment of p. 289. p. 290. Somerset as Regent, he decides the question as to the accusation of the armorer by his man, and Horner adds to Somerset's expression of thanks, "And I accept the combat willingly;" although, even in the quarto, the King says nothing about the combat. The lines in the quarto were doubtless struck out as enfeebling the impression of Gloster's supremacy. SCENE IV. "Enter Margery Jourdain," &c. :- This Scene is historical. The Duchess of Gloster, or Dame Elinor,' as she was universally called, in the words of Holinshed, "by sorcerie and enchantment intinded to destroy the King to advance hir husband unto the crowne." Her accomplices were two priests named Thomas Southwell and John Hum, Roger Bolingbroke, a professed necromancer, and Margery Jordan, Jourdeine, or Jourdemaine, surnamed the Witch of Ely. They were all tried and convicted; the Duchess was condemned as in the play; Margery Jourdaine was burned at Smithfield; Bolingbroke was drawn, hanged, and quartered; Southwell died in the Tower on the eve of his execution; and Hum was pardoned. "To this gear":—i. e., this business. 661 the silent of the night":- - This expression, akin to "the vast of night," (The Tempest, Act I. Sc. 1,) is consistent, at least, with Shakespeare's use of language. Steevens and Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 plausibly read, "the silence of the night." Just below, the latter also has, "ghosts break ope their graves." ,, "[Reading out of a paper] not in the original; but in the to Hume, "Take this scrole writ the questions," &c. :- This stage direction is quarto the Duchess says of paper here, wherein is "False fiend, avoid!"- Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 plausibly has, "Foul fiend," &c. p. 291. "We'll see your trinkets," &c.:— - Some corruption of this line and the hemistich has probably taken place, owing to an imperfect correction of the MS. or a compositor's mistake with regard to all.' We should probably read, as Mr. Dyce suggests, "here all forthcoming. -Away!" (here' having the time of a dissyllable,) or, "here forthcoming all, Away!" Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 has, "are all forthcoming." But there does not seem sufficient certainty as to the corruption or either of VOL. VII. Y p. 291. the proposed emendations to justify a change in the text. "Aio, te, acida," &c. : - This was the response of the Oracle to Pyrrhus. "Tell me, what fate," &c. :- The slight variations between York's and Hume's reading of this paper will be noticed by the careful reader. Such oversights are not uncommon with Shakespeare, and are rather peculiar to him. p. 293. p. 294. p. 296. p. 297. p. 298. ACT SECOND. SCENE I. "Beat on a crown":- So in The Tempest, Act V. Sc. 1: "Do not infest your minds with beating on The strangeness of this business." "With such holiness," &c.: This line is not a verse, and may be corrupt; but the quarto reads, "Church-men so hote. Good uncle, can you doate?" [i. e., do't.] Note, by the way, hot' and 'do't' both pronounced with the first or name sound of o. "True, uncle":-In the folio, where only they occur, this and the two following speeches are given to Gloster, by an obvious mistake, which Theobald corrected. 66 Simpcox, come":- The folio has, "Symon," which seems to be clearly a misprint of Symcox.' Then, Saunder, sit there," &c. :- Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 has, for the sake of rhythm, "sit thou there," &c. But in the quarto, this speech is printed as prose, and in the folio in rhythmless lines of variable length; some having six, some twelve syllables. Mr. Dyce supposes that the speech "was written by the original author in verse, and that his verse has been corrupted into prose." The folio has, near the end of the speech, "think it cunning to be great; 'his cunning" being found in the quarto and in Mr. Collier's folio of 1632. on 66 See Notes "A sort of naughty persons lewdly bent": "few of any sort," Much Ado about Nothing, Act I. Sc. 1, and on "this lewd fellow," Ibid. Act V. Sc. 1. p. 300. p. 301. p. 304. p. 305. SCENE II. "Edward the Third, my lords," &c.: The folio version of this pedigree differs from those in the quartos of 1594 and 1619, and they differ from each other. All are incorrect. There is confusion, too, about Edmund Mortimer; but as it does not in the least affect the comprehensibility of the text, or the identification of the personages, or the progress of the play, those who wish to be satisfied with regard to it must go to the genealogists, or to Malone's two-page note upon the subject. 66 where, as all you know" :- York addresses but two persons, Salisbury and Warwick, and yet uses all,' which now-a-days we never address but to three or more. Is this a remnant of the French idiom, tous les deux ? 66— who was son' -In the folio this son' has accidentally dropped to the end of the following line, which thus reads: " 'fift sonnes sonne." : "pro "What plain proceeding," &c.:- The folio has " ceedings," which possibly the author wrote. 66 661 SCENE III. for sins":- The folio misprints, "for sinne." govern England's realm": - Dr. Johnson, Mr. Collier's folio corrector, and other editors, Mr. Dyce among them, read, "England's helm; " I cannot see with what justification. The mere repetition of the word is none. Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 reads, in Gloster's next speech, 66 My staff here, noble Henry, is my staff. To think I fain would keep it makes me laugh!" 661 this staff of honor raught":— i. e., reft or bereft. The word is sometimes the preterite of reach.' 66 in her youngest days":- Here 'her' refers to 'pride,' and is used for its,' as 'his' also is in the previous line. See the Note on "it's folly," &c., Winter's Tale, Act I. Sc. 2, p. 385. "Enter, on one side," &c. :- This very particular stage direction is found almost verbatim in both folio and quarto, except that in the old copies we have, as usual, "door" for side,' and that Peter is simply called "his Gentlemen only had the privilege of fighting man." p. 306. p. 307. p. 308. p. 309. p. 311. ་ with swords and spears: the staff and sand-bag was the appointed weapon for men of inferior rank in such trials by battle. This combat is a dramatic transcript of one which actually took place in the reign of Henry VI. upon a similar quarrel. The combatants were named John Daveys and William Catour. They fought in Smithfield, where barriers were erected: the body of the armorer was watched until it was drawn to Tyburn, where it was hanged and quartered as that of a traitor. The whole affair was a week in passing. See Nicholls' Illustrations of the Manners and Expenses of Ancient Times. 4to. 1797. with a downright blow" :- Here the quarto adds, "as Bevis of Southampton fell upon Ascapart," which some editors have restored for the mere sake of the allusion, though in defiance of authority, and to the detriment (it is safe to say what Shakespeare thought) of characteristic truth. For the story of Bevis of Southampton, see Ellis' Early English Romances. SCENE IV. = "Uneath she may endure":-i. e., hardly she may Uneath are able to uphold the sparkling extree long." laughing at thy shame": So both quarto and folio. The second folio has, “still laughing," &c. 66— with verses written upon her back":— This part of the stage direction is from the quarto; the rest only is found in the folio. deep-fet groans" :- i. e., deep-fetched groans. Fet' for fetched' frequently occurs in the first editions of the authorized translation of the Bible. It was unjustifiably modernized in a revised edition of the last century, which has since been followed. "Entreat her not the worse": - So, "they entreated them spitefully," Matthew xxii., and "he shall be spitefully entreated," Luke xviii. 32. ACT THIRD. SCENE I. "A sennet" 'Sennet,' like 'tucket,' meant the sounding of an instrument, not the instrument itself. The latter word is clearly from the Italian toccare = to |
