Thofe eyes of thine from mine have drawn falt tears, Sham'd their aspects with store of childish drops: And twenty times made paufe, to fob, and weep, My tongue could never learn fweet foothing word;" "For I have heard it [love] is a life in death, "That laughs and weeps, and all but with a breath." MALONE. 3 Thefe eyes, which never &c.] The twelve following beautiful lines added after the first editions. POPE. They were added with many more. JOHNSON. 4 Not, when my father -] The old copies read-No, when, &c. The correction was made by Mr. Pope. I am not sure that it is neceffary. This doubt derives ftrength from a fubfequent paffage : "Duch. I hope he is much grown fince last I saw him. 'Q. Elix. But I hear, no." MALONE. My manly eyes did fcorn &c.] Here is an apparent reference to King Henry VI. P. III. A&t II. fc. i. See p. 52, n. 5. STEEVENS. 6 -fweet foothing word;] Thus the quarto, 1598. The folio has-fweet Smoothing word. MALONE. Smooth is, probably, the true reading. So again, p.301, line ult: "Smile in men's faces, Smooth, deceive, and cog." See also, Pericles, A&t I. fc. ii. STEEVENS. But now thy beauty is propos'd my fee, My proud heart fues, and prompts my tongue to I lay it naked to the deadly ftroke, And humbly beg the death upon my knee. [He lays his Breaft open; fhe offers at it with his Sword. Nay, do not pause; for I did kill king Henry ;But 'twas thy beauty that provoked me. Nay, now despatch; 'twas I that stabb'd young Ed ward ; [She again offers at his Breaft. But 'twas thy heavenly face that fet me on. [She lets fall the Sword. Take up the fword again, or take up me. ANNE. Arife, diffembler: though I wish thy death, I will not be thy executioner. GLO. Then bid me kill myself, and I will do it. GLO. That was in thy rage: Speak it again, and, even with the word, This hand, which, for thy love, did kill thy love, Shall, for thy love, kill a far truer love; To both their deaths fhalt thou be acceffary. 7 But 'twas thy beauty-] Shakspeare countenances the obfervation, that no woman can ever be offended with the mention of her beauty. JOHNSON, ANNE. I would, I knew thy heart. ANNE. Was never true. Well, well, put up your fword. GLO. Say then, my peace is made. GLO. Vouchsafe to wear this ring. ANNE. To take, is not to give. [She puts on the Ring. GLO. Look, how this ring encompaffeth thy finger, Even fo thy breaft enclofeth my poor heart; Wear both of them, for both of them are thine. But beg one favour at thy gracious hand, GLO. That it may please you leave these fad defigns To him that hath more caufe 9 to be a mourner, 8 Then man Was never true.] Old copy Then never man was true. For the fake of measure, I have hazarded this flight tranfpofition. STEEVENS. 9-more caufe-] The folio-moft caufe. STEEVENS. And presently repair to Crosby-place: 2, you, ANNE. With all my heart; and much it joys me too, To fee you are become fo penitent. Treffel, and Berkley, go along with me. GLO. Bid me farewell. ANNE. "Tis more than you deferve: But, fince you teach me how to flatter you, [Exeunt Lady ANNE, TRESSEL, and BERKLEY. I Crosby-place:] A house near Bishopfgate Street, belonging to the Duke of Glofter. JOHNSON.. Crosby-Place is now Crosby-fquare in Bishopfgate Street; part of the house is yet remaining, and is a meeting place for a prefbyterian congregation. SIR J. HAWKINS. This magnificent house was built in the year 1466, by Sir John Crosby, grocer and woolman. He died in 1475. The ancient hall of this fabrick is ftill remaining, though divided by an additional floor, and incumbered by modern galleries, having been converted into a place of worship for Antinomians, &c. The upper part of it is now the warehouse of an eminent Packer. Sir J. Crosby's tomb is in the neighbouring church of St. Helen the Great. 2 STEEVENS. with all expedient duty-] See Vol. XI. p. 41, n. 6. MALONE. 3 Imagine I have faid farewell already.] Cibber, who altered King Richard III. for the ftage, was fo thoroughly convinced of the ridiculousness and improbability of this fcene, that he thought himself obliged to make Treffel fay: When future chronicles fhall fpeak of this, They will be thought romance, not hiftory. Thus alfo, in Twelfth-Night, where Fabian obferving the UA GENT. Towards Chertsey, noble lord? GLO. No, to White-Friars; there attend my coming. [Exeunt the reft, with the Corfe. Was ever woman in this humour woo'd? Was ever woman in this humour won? I'll have her, but I will not keep her long. With curfes in her mouth, tears in her eyes, The bleeding witness of her hatred by; With God, her confcience, and these bars against me, And I no friends to back my fuit withal, But the plain devil, and diffembling looks, And yet to win her,-all the world to nothing! conduct of Malvolio, fays: "If this were played upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an improbable fiction.” From an account of our late unsuccessful embaffy to the Emperor of China, we learn, indeed, that a scene of equal abfurdity was reprefented in a theatre at Tien-fing: "One of the dramas, particularly, attracted the attention of those who recollected fcenes, fomewhat fimilar, upon the English stage. The piece represented an Emperor of China and his Empress living in fupreme felicity, when, on a fudden, his fubjects revolt, a civil war enfues, battles are fought, and at laft the arch-rebel, who was a general of cavalry, overcomes his fovereign, kills him with his own hand, and routs the imperial army. The captive Emprefs then appears upon the stage in all the agonies of despair, naturally refulting from the lofs of her husband and of her dignity, as well as the apprehenfion for that of her honour. Whilst fhe is tearing her hair, and rending the fkies with her complaints, the conqueror enters, approaches her with respect, addresses her in a gentle tone, foothes her forrows with his compaffion, talks of love and adoration, and like Richard the Third, with Lady Anne in Shakspeare, prevails in less than half an hour, on the Chinese Princess to dry up her tears, to forget her deceased confort, and yield to a confoling wooer." STEEVENS. 1 |