Зображення сторінки
PDF
ePub

VOL. V. for Beauty, 1636: "I am as full of humours, as an April K. HEN. day of variety.'

IV. P. II.

[ocr errors]

Again, in Ben Jonfon's Silent Woman, 1605:

"As proud as May, and humorous as April."

But a winter's day has generally too decided a character to admit of Dr. Johnson's interpretation. MALONE.

572. Have broke their fleeps with thought,] The quarto reads, more elegantly their fleep. MALONE.

575 when riot is thy care?] After Tyrwhitt's note. — One cannot help wifhing Mr. Tyrwhitt's elegant explanation to be true; yet I doubt whether the poet meant to say more than-What wilt thou do, when riot is thy regular business and occupation? MALONE.

578. For what in me was purchas'd,] Purchafed feems to be here ufed in its legal fenfe, as opposed to an acquifition by defcent. MALONE.

579. Left reft, and lying ftill, might make them look

Too near into my ftate.] The expedition that Cæfar meditated againft the Parthians, immediately before his death, has been afcribed to the fame apprehenfion which dictated to Henry a journey to the Holy Land:

"Invidiæ ftimulos ergo ut lenire furentes,
"Et capiti infidias, quas maturare quietem
"Non nefcit, Cæfar factis avertere poffit,
"Nec non externo maculas abftergere bello
"Civilis, cum jam Craffi vindi&ta periffet,
"Debita jamdudum Latio, juffu ille Senatus,
"(Ne patrum imminui videatur facra poteftas)
"Decretoque togæ, mandari Parthica bella
"Suppliciter petiit." Supplem. Lucani, lib. vii.

MALONE.

596. Add to my note+] Sir Thomas Hanmer (as an ingenious friend obferves to me) was miflaken in fuppofing profaccia an Italian word. There is no fuch word in that language. The phrafe is-buon pro vi facia-much good may it do you! MALONE.

Ibid. And welcome merry Shrove-tide] Shrove-tide was formerly a feafon of extraordinary fport and feafting. In the Romish church there was anciently a feaft immediately preceding Lent, which lafted many days, called CARNISCAPIUM. See Carpentier in v. Supp. Lat. Gloff. Du Cange. tom. I. p. 831. In fome cities of France, an officer was annually chofen, called LE PRINCE D'AMOREUX, whe

prefided

prefided over the sports of the youth for fix days before Afh- VoL. V. Wednesday. Ibid. v. Amoratus, p. 195; and v. Cardinali', K. HEN. p. 818. Alfo v. Spinetum, tom. III. p. 848. Some traces IV. P. II. of these feftivities ftill remain in our univerfities. In the Percy Houfbold-Book, 1512, it appears, "that the clergy and officers of Lord Percy's chapel performed a play before his Lordship upon Shrowftewefday at night" p. 345.

T. WARTON. Ibid. And we shall be merry, now comes in the fweet of the night.] I believe thefe latter words make part of fome old ballad. In one of Autolycus's fongs we meet :

"Why then comes in the fweet of the year."

Moft of the speeches attributed to Silence, in this fcene, are ends of ballads. Though his imagination did not furnish him with any thing original to fay, he could repeat the verfes of others. MALONE.

[ocr errors][merged small]
[blocks in formation]

VOL. VI.
KING
HEN. V.

KING HENRY

Page 14. Or, rather, fwaying more upon our part,] Swaz◄ ing is inclining. So, in K. Hen. VI. P. III:

"Now ways it this way, like a mighty fea,
"Forc'd by the tide to combat with the wind;
"Now fways it that way." MALONE.

20. After Steevens's note .] Imbare is, I believe, the true reading. It is formed like impaint, impawn, and many other words ufed by Shakfpeare. MALONE.

22. She hath been then more fear'd than harm'd, my liege:] Fear'd is here frightened. MALONE.

25. They have a king and officers of forts:] The quarto of 1600 reads, I think rightly,officers of fort; i, e. of rank or quality. So, in Measure for Measure:

"Give notice to fuch men of fort and suit,

"As are to meet him."

Again, in this play of K. Henry V :

"What prifoners of good fort are taken?"

Again: "It may be his enemy is a gentleman of great fort." MALONE,

36. we'll be all three fworn brothers to France:] The humour of worn brothers fhould be open'd a little. In the times of adventure, it was usual for two chiefs to bind themfelves to fhare in each other's fortune, and divide their acquifitions between them. So, in the Conqueror's expedition, Robert de Oily, and Roger de Ivery were fratres jurati; and Robert gave one of the honours he received to his worn brother Roger. So these three fcoundrels fet out for France, as if they were going to make a conqueft of the kingdom. WHALLEY.

37.though patience be a tir'd mare, yet he will plod.] So, in Pierce's Supererogation, or a New Praife of the Old Affe, &c." "Silence is a flave in a chaine, and patience the common packhorfe of the world." STEEVENS.

Ibid. O well-a-day, lady, if he be not drawn now!] To follow Theobald's note -The quarto confirms Mr. Theobald's emendation. It reads " O Lord, here's corporal

Nym's

Nym's, now we fhall have wilful adultery &c." After VoL. VI. "Nym's," the words-fword drawn, or fword out, are KING manifeftly omitted by the carelessnefs of the compofitor. HEN. V. Through out this play, the editor of the quarto copy, which was probably taken down in fhort-hand, during the representation, feems to have given the fenfe of many paffages, as well as he could pick it up, without much regarding the author's words.

Surely, lady has crept into this paffage by the compofitor's eye glancing on the preceding word. It feems to have no meaning here. MALONE.

40. Therefore exhale-] Exhale, I believe, here fignifies draw, or in Piftol's language, lug out.

The ftage-direction in the old copy, which ought to be preferved, [they drawe] confirms this explanation.

MALONE. 43. Now fits the wind fair,] The quarto of 1600 reads-Now, firs, the wind is fairwhich may be right. MALONE.

47. And other devils that fuggeft &c.] The reafoning, I think, requires that we should read-For other devils

MALONE.

Ibid. But he that temper'd thee-] Dr. Johnson's emendation is strongly fupported, not only by the word suggest, which he has mentioned, but likewife by the foregoing and fubfequent lines:

And whatsoever cunning fiend it was "That wrought upon thee

[ocr errors]

"If that fame dæmon that hath gull'd thee thus”

MALONE.

53. To follow Tyrwhitt's note.] In the account of Falstaff's death, my dame Quickly fays, "'a made a finer end, and went away an it had been any chrifom'd child" The chrifom is properly explained as the white garment put upon the child at its baptifm. And this the child wore till the time the mother came to be churched, who was then to offer it to the minifter. So that, truly fpeaking, a chrifom child was one that died after it had been baptized, and before its mother was churched. Erroneously, however, it was used for children that die before they are baptized; and by this denomination fuch children were entered in the bills of mortality down to the year 1726. But have I not feen, in fome edition, chriftom child? If that reading were fupported by any copy of authority, I should

04

like

VOL. VI. like it much. It agrees better with my dame's enuntiation, KING who was not very likely to pronounce a hard word with proHEN. V. priety, and who juft before had called Abraham-Arthur. WHALLEY.

Mr. Whalley is right in his conjecture. The first and fecond folio both read chriftom; and fo fhould the word hereafter be printed. MALONE.

58. After Steevens's note 2.] The following lines in The Devil's Charter, a tragedy, by Barnaby Barnes, 1607, may perhaps afflift the reader in his conjectures:

"I conjure thee, foul fiend of Acheron,
"By puifant Hobblecock, and Brittletoe,

By Windicaper, Monti-boggle-bo-" MALONE, 60. And you shall find, his vanities fore-fpent

Were but the outside of the Roman Bir

Brutus,

Covering difcretion with a coat of folly] I believe, Shakspeare meant no more than that Henry, in his external appearance, was like the elder Brutus, wild and foolish, while in fact his understanding was good.

Our author's meaning is fufficiently explained by the following lines in The Rape of Lucrece, 1594:

Brutus, who pluck'd the knife from Lucrece' fide, "Seeing fuch emulation in their woe,

"Began to cloath his wit in ftate and pride,
"Burying in Lucrece's wound his folly's fhow.
"He with the Romans was esteemed so,
"As filly jeering idcots are with kings,
"For fportive words and uttering foolish things.
"But now he throws that allow habit by
"Wherein deep policy did him disguise,
"And arm'd his long-hid wits advifedly
"To check the tears in Colatinus' eyes."

MALONE.

Ibid. Which of a weak and nigardly projection] This paffage, as it ftands, is fo perplexed, that I cannot help thinking it corrupt. If which be referred to proportions of defence, (and I do not fee to what else it can be referred) the conftruction will be--which proportions of defence, of a weak and niggardly projection &c. doth, like a mifer &c." I fufpect the author wrote:

While oft, a weak and niggardly projection

Doth &c.

The reafoning then is clear.-In cafes of defence, it is beft to imagine the enemy more powerful than he seems to be i

« НазадПродовжити »