ficulty from the passage. The pleasure of today, by revolution of events and change of circumstances, often loses all its value to us, and becomes to-morrow a pain. STEEVENS.

J

P. 103, 1. 4. The hand could pluck her back, that shov'd her on.] The verb could has a peculiar signification in this place; it does not denote power but inelination. The sense is, the hand that drove her off would now willingly pluck her back again. HEATH.

Could, would and should, are a thousand times indiscriminately used in the old plays, and yet appear to have been so employed rather by choice than by chance. STEEVENS.

P. 103, 1. 20. upon far poorer moment :] For less reason; upon meaner motives.

JOHNSON.

P. 104, I. 7-11. When it pleaseth their deities to take the wife of a man from him, it shows to man the tailors of the earth; comforting therein, that when old robes are worn out, there are members to make new. .] I have printed this after the original, which, though harsh and obscure, I know not how to amend. Sir Thomas Hanmer reads, They show to man the tailors of the earth; comforting him therein, &c. I think the passage, with somewhat less alteration, for alteration is always dangerous, may stand thus: It shows to men the tailors of the earth, comforting them &c. JOHNSON.

The meaning is this. As the Gods have been pleased to take away your wife Fulvia, so they have provided you with a new one in Cleopatra; in like manner as the tailors of the earth, when your old garments are worn out, accommodate you with new ones. ANONYMUS..

VOL. XV.

18

*

When the deities

pear to man like eased to take a man's

wife from him, this of theirs makes them ap tailors of the earth: afford

this comfortable reflection, that the deities have made other women to supply the place of his former wife; as the tailor, when one robe is worn out, supplies him with another. MALONE. P. 104, 1. 24. Expedience for expedition.

2

WARBURTON

P. 104, 1. 25. And get her love to part. } l have no doubt but we should read leave, instead of love. So afterwards:

Would she had never given you leave to come!" M. MASON.

And prevail on
STEEVENS.

to our separation.

Isuspect the author wrote: And get her leave to part.sla og sans sul de bus

MOThe greater part of the

Tolibe sd:

ployed by "Antony, he succeeding scene Cleopatra's permission

to

an endeavour in fo depart, sand in "vows

of everlasting constancy, hot in persuading her to forget him, or love him n longer. MALONE. P. 104, 1. 26 with more urgent touches,] Things that touch me more sensibly, inore pressing motives.

JOHNSON.

P. 104, 1. 29. Petition us at home Wish us at home, call for us to reside at home. evasd to Torch To ORD TOANSON.

V

teza,low ai brow an

P. 105, 1. 4. Which, like the conrser's hair, 102 11 10 5326 31 hath

but life Alludes to an an old idle notion that the hair of a horse dropt

animato corrupted water, will turn to an

મારી ૧૦ Unds{ o

Dr. Lister, in the Philosophical Transactions, showed that what were vulgarly thought animated horse-hairs, are real insects. It was also affirmed, that they moved. like serpents, and were poisonous to swallow. TOLLET.

P. 105, 1. 5-7. .3. To such whose

-

d

Say, our pleasure, is under us, requires Our quick remolace is un from hence.] Say to

those whose place is under us, i. e. to our attendants, that our pleasure requires us to remove in haste from hence. The old copy has

places under us.

R

and require." MALONE. I shall read the passage thus:le Dive

Say our pleasure

To such who've
Our, quick remove, &c.

whose

under us, requires

The amendment is as slight as that adopted by the editor, and makes the sense more clear.

we sub to 3750M. MASON. Before I had seen

I concur with Mr. Malone. his note, I had explained these words exactly in the same manner. STEEVENS.

P. 105, 1. 16. I did not send you;] You must go as if you came without my order or knowledge. lease som en donos ediJOHNSON.

P. 107, first 1. in our brows' bent;

1

ise.

in the arch of our eyebrows. STEEVENS. I P. 107, 12 was a race of heaven had a smack or flavour of heaven. WARBURTON. This word is well

the race of wine is the lained by Dr. Warburton

talp

taste of the soil. Sir T. Hanmer, not understanding the word, reads, rag

I am not sure that the poet did not of heavenly origin. Malone.

ray. JOHNSON. s

mean was

P. 107, l. 12. Remains in use with you.] The poet seems to allude to the legal distinction between the use and absolute possession.

་

JOHNSON.

P. 107, 1. 24.. which most with you should safe my going] i, e should render my going not dangerous, not likely to produce any mischief to you. Mr. Theobald instead of safe, the reading of the old copy, unnecessarily reads salve. MALONE,

safe my going, is the true reading.

P.

107,

wasy

STEEVENS.

1. 27 29. Cleo. Though age from folly could not give me freedom, It does from childishness: Can Fulvia die:1 That Fulvia mortal, Cleopatra could have no reason to doubt; the meaning therefore of her question to be: Will there ever be an end of 2xcuses? As often as you want to leave. me, will not some Fulvia,some new pretext be found for your departure? She has already said that though age could not exempt her from follies, at least it frees her from a childish belief in all he says. STEEVENS. » zo boasted a avoid I 3d to think, that Cleopatra meam Is it possible that Fulvia should die? I will not believe it. RITSON BALL S acit

I am no more

.

Though age has as has not exempted me from f fony I am not so childish, to have apprehensions from a rival that is no no more. And is Fulvia dead indeed? Such, I think, is is the meanings 15

MALONE.

P. 107, 1. 32. The garboils she awak'd Ji.e."

the commotion she occasioned. STEEVENS.

In Cawdrey's Alphabetical Table of hard Words, 8vo. 1604, garboile is explained by the word hurlyburly. MALONE.

P. 107 last lines. Where be the sacred vials thou should'st fill

With sorrowful water?] Alluding to the lachrymatory vials, or bottles of tears, which the Romans sometimes put into the urn of a friend, JOHNSON. P. 108, 1. 9. 10.- I am quickly ill, and well. So Antony loves.] i. e. uncertain as the state health is the love of Antony. STEEVENS. P. 108, 1. 17. to Egypt:

of

my

Queen of Egypt. JOHNSON.

P108, 1. 25.

To me,

the

this Herculean Roman] An

tony traced his descent from Anton, a son of Hercules. STEEVENS.

*P.108, 1, 32, 133. O, my oblivion is a very LaveAntony,

Ao And I am all forgotten.] Cleopatra bas something to say, which seems to be suppressed by sorrow, and after many attempts to produce her meaning, the cries out : 0, this oblivious memory of mine is as false and treacherous to me as Antony is, and I forget every thing. Oblivion, I believe, is boldly used for a memory apt to be deceitful Loider If too much latitude be taken in this explanawe might with little violence read, as Mr. Edwards his MS. notes:

tion,

proposed is a ver

2

me: oblivion is a very Antony, &c. T STEEVENS. Perhaps nothing more is necessary here thap a change of punctuation; O my! being silt an exclamation frequently used in the west of England. HENLEY.