And these breed honour: That is honour's fcorn,
Which challenges itself as honour's born,
And is not like the fire. Honours beft thrive,
When rather from our acts we them derive
Than our fore-goers: the mere word's a slave
Debaucht on every tomb, on every grave;
A lying trophy ; and as oft is dumb,
Where duft and damn'd oblivion is the tomb
Of honour'd bones, indeed. What fhould be faid?
If thou can'ft like this creature as a maid,

I can create the reft: virtue and fhe,

Is her own dow❜ry; honour and wealth from me,
Ber. I cannot love her, nor will strive to do't.
King. Thou wrong'ft thyfelf, if thou fhould'ft ftrive
to chufe.

Hel. That you are well reftor'd, my lord, I'm glad : Let the reft go.

9

King. My honour's at the ftake; which to defend,

For the greatest part of her encomium turned upon her virtue. To omit this therefore in the recapitulation of her qualities, had been against all the rules of good fpeaking. Nor let it be objected that this is requiring an exactnefs in our author which we fhould not expect. For he who could reafon with the force our author doth here (and we ought always to diftinguish between Shakspeare on his guard and in his rambles), and illuftrate that reasoning with fuch beauty of thought and propriety of expreffion, could never make use of a word which quite destroyed the exactness of his reafoning, the propriety of his thought, and the elegance of his expreffion.

WARBURTON. Here is a long note, which I wifh had been shorter, Good is

I

better than young, as it refers to honour. But fhe is more the immediate heir of nature with refpect to youth than goodness. To be immediate heir is to inherit without any intervening tranfmitter: thus fhe inherits beauty immediately from nature, but hōnour is tranfmitted by ancestors; youth is received immediately from nature, but goodness may be conceived in part the gift of parents,

or the effect of education. The alteration therefore lofes on one fide what it gains on the other. My honour's at the Stake which to defeat

9

I must produce my Power.-] The poor King of France is again made a Man of Gotham, by our unmerciful Editors. For he is not to make use of his Authority to defeat, but to defend hiş Honour, THEOBALD. I muft

I must produce my power. Here, take her hand,
Proud fcornful boy, unworthy this good gift!
That doft in vile mifprifion fhackle up

My love, and her defert; that canst not dream,
We, poizing us in her defective scale,

Shall weigh thee to the beam; that wilt not know,
It is in us to plant thine honour, where

We please to have it grow. Check thy contempt:
Obey our will, which travels in thy good;
Believe not thy disdain, but presently
Do thine own fortunes that obedient right,
Which both thy duty owes, and our power claims;
Or I will throw thee from my care for ever
Into the ftaggers', and the careless lapfe
Of youth and ignorance; my revenge and hate
Loofing upon thee in the name of juftice,
Without all terms of pity. Speak, thine answer.
Ber. Pardon, my gracious Lord; for I fubmit
My fancy to your eyes. When I confider,
What great creation, and what dole of honour
Flies where you bid; I find that fhe, which late
Was in my nobler thoughts moft bafe, is now
The praised of the King; * who, fo enobled,
Is, as 'twere, born so.

King. Take her by the hand,

And tell her, fhe is thine: to whom I promise
A counterpoize; if not in thy estate,

A balance more repleat.

Ber. I take her hand.

King. Good fortune, and the favour of the King Smile upon this contract; whofe ceremony Shall feem expedient on the new-born brief,

is made.

2,

And

* Into the flaggers,] To this the allufion, I fuppofe, One fpecies of the faggers, or the borfes apoplexy, is a raging impatience, which makes the animal dafh himself with deftructive violence againft pofts or walls.

whose ceremony Shall feem expedient on the newborn brief, And be perform'd to night; -] Y 3

This

And be perform'd to-night; the folemn feaft
Shall more attend upon the coming space,
Expecting abfent friends. As thou lov't her,
Thy love's to me religious; elfe does err. [Exeunt.

S CEN E VII.

Manent Parolles and Lafeu.

Laf. Do you hear, Monfieur? a word with you,
Par. Your pleasure, Sir?

Laf. Your Lord and Mafter did well to make his recantation.

Par. Recantation?

my Lord? my Master? Laf. Ay, is it not a language I speak?

Par. A moft harfh one, and not to be understood without bloody fucceeding. My master?

Laf. Are you companion to the Count Roufillon?
Par. To any Count; to all Counts; to what is

man.

Laf. To what is Count's man; Count's mafter is of another ftile.

Par. You are too old, Sir; let it fatisfy you, you are too old.

Laf. I must tell thee, Sirrah, I write man; to which title age cannot bring thee.

Par. What I dare too well do, I dare not do.

3

Laf. I did think thee, for two ordinaries 3, to be a pretty wife fellow; thou didst make tolerable vent of thy travel; it might pafs; yet the scarfs and the ban

nerets about thee did manifoldly diffuade me from believing thee a veffel of too great a burthen. I have now found thee; when I lofe thee again, I care not: yet art thou good for nothing but taking up, and that thou'rt scarce worth.

Par. Hadft thou not the privilege of antiquity upon thee

Laf. Do not plunge thyfelf too far in anger, left thou haften thy trial; which if,--Lord have mercy on thee for a hen! fo, my good window of lattice, fare thee well; thy cafement I need not open, I look thro' thee. Give me thy hand.

Par. My Lord, you give me moft egregious indignity.

Laf. Ay, with all my heart, and thou art worthy of it.

Par. I have not, my Lord, deferv'd it.

Laf. Yes, good faith, ev'ry dram of it; and I will not 'bate thee a fcruple..

Par. Well, I fhall be wifer

Laf. Ev'n as foon as thou canft, for thou haft to pull at a smack o'th' contrary. If ever thou be'st bound in thy scarf and beaten, thou shalt find what it is to be proud of thy bondage. I have a defire to hold my acquaintance with thee, or rather my knowledge, that I may fay in the default, he is a man I

know.

Par. My Lord, you do me most insupportable

vexation.

Laf. I would, it were hell-pains for thy fake, and my poor doing eternal: for doing, I am paft; as I will by thee, in what motion age will give me leave

4-taking up,] To take up, is to contradi&t, to call to account, as well as to pick off the ground,

[Exit.

1

Par. Well, thou haft a fon fhall take this difgrace off me, fourvy, old, filthy, fcurvy Lord!

well, I must be patient, there is no fettering of authority. I'll beat him, by my life, if I can meet him with any convenience, an he were double and doublé a Lord. I'll have no more pity of his age, than I would have of I'll beat him, an if I could but meet him again.

Re-enter Lafeu.

Laf. Sirrah, your Lord and Master's married, there's news for you: you have a new mistress.

Par. I moft unfeignedly befeech your Lordship to make some reservation of your wrongs. He, my good Lord, whom I serve above, is my mafter.

Laf. Who? God?

Par. Ay, Sir.

Laf. The devil it is, that's thy master. Why doft thou garter up thy arms o' this fafhion? doft make hofe of thy fleeves? do other fervants fo? thou wert beft fet thy lower part where thy nofe ftands. By mine honour, if I were but two hours younger, I'd beat thee methinks, thou art a general offence, and every man fhould beat thee. I think, thou waft created for men to breathe themselves upon thee.

age will give me leave.] Here is a line loft after past; fo that it fhould be diftinguished by a break with afterisks. The very words of the loft line it is impoffible to retrieve; but the fenie is obvious enough. For doing I am past; age has deprived me of much of my force and vigour, yet I have fill enough to fhew the world I can do myfelf right as I will by thee, in what motion [or in the best manner] age will give me leave. WARBURTON. This fufpicion of a chafm