take no warning by my coming. Every man hath his fault, and honefty is his. I ha' told him on't, but I could never get him from't.

Enter a Servant, with wine.

Serv. Please your lordship, here is the wine. Lucul. Flaminius, I have noted thee always wife. Here's to thee.

Flam. Your lordship fpeaks your pleasure.

Lucul. I have obferv'd thee always for a towardly prompt fpirit, give thee thy due, and one that knows what belongs to reafon, and canft ufe the time well, if the time use thee well: Good parts in thee.-Get you gone firrah. [To the Servant, who goes out.Draw nearer, honeft Flaminius. Thy lord's, a bountiful gentleman: but thou art wife, and thou knowest well enough, altho' thou comeft to me, that this is no time to lend money, especially upon bare friendfhip without fecurity. Here's three folidares for thee Good boy, wink at me, and fay, thou faw'st me not. Fare thee well.

Flam. Is't poffible the world fhould fo much differ, And we alive that liv'd? Fly, damned bafeness, To him that worships thee. [Throwing the money away. Lucul. Ha! now I fee thou art a fool, and fit for [Exit Lucullus.

thy mafter.

Flam. May thefe add to the number that may fcald thee!

Let molten coin be thy damnation,*

Thou disease of a friend, and not himself!
Has friendship fuch a faint and milky heart,
⚫ It turns in less than two nights? O you Gods!

And we alive that liv'd?]i. e. And we who were alive then, alive now. As much as to fay, in fo short a time. WARBURTON. * Let molten coin be thy damnation,] Perhaps the poet alludes to the punishment inflicted on M. Aquilius by Mithridates. STEEV. It turns in less than two nights ?—] Alluding to the turning or acefcence of milk. JOHNSON.

I feel my master's paffion! This flave

Unto his honour' has my lord's meat in him;
Why should it thrive, and turn to nutriment,
When he is turn'd to poison?

O! may diseases only work upon't,

And, when he's fick to death, let not that part of

nature

Which my lord paid for, be of any power
To expel ficknefs, but prolong his hour!

SCENE II.

A publick Street.

Enter Lucius with three ftrangers.

[Exit.

Luc. Who, the lord Timon? He is my very good friend, and an honourable gentleman.

I Stran. We know him for no lefs, though we are but strangers to him. But I can tell you one thing, my lord, and which I hear from common rumours; now lord Timon's happy hours are done and paft, and his eftate fhrinks from him.

Luc. Fy, no. Do not believe it; he cannot want for money.

2 Stran. But believe you this, my lord, that not long ago one of his men was with the lord Lucullus,

• Unto his honour.] Thus the old copy. What Flaminius means is, This flave (to the honour of his character) has, &c. The modern editors read,-unto this hour. STEEVENS.

2

Of nurture] The common copies read nature. The emendation is fir T. Hanmer's. JOHNSON.

Of nature is furely the moft expreffive reading. Flaminius confiders that nutriment which Lucullus had for a length of time received at Timon's table, as conftituting a great part of his animal fyftem. STEEVENS.

3 We know him for no lefs,] That is, we know him by report to be no less than you reprefent him, though we are ftrangers to his perfon.

JOHNSON.

to

to borrow fo many talents; nay, urg'd extremely for't, and fhew'd what neceffity belong'd to't, and yet was deny'd.

Luc. How?

2 Stran. I tell you, deny'd, my lord.

Luc. What a strange cafe was that? Now, before, the Gods, I am afham'd on't. Deny'd that honourable man? There was very little honour fhew'd in that. For my own part, I must needs confefs, I have received fome small kindneffes from him, as money, plate, jewels, and fuch like trifles, nothing comparing to his; yet had he miftook him, and fent him to me, I fhould ne'er have deny'd his occafion fo many talents.

Enter Servilius.

Ser. See, by good hap, yonder's my lord: I have fweat to fee his honour.-My honour'd lord

[To Lucius. Luc. Servilius! you are kindly met, fir. Fare thee well :-commend me to thy honourable virtuous lord, my very exquifite friend.

Ser. May it please your honour, my lord hath fent-

Luc. Ha! what hath he fent? I am fo much endear'd to that lord. He's ever fending. How shall I thank him, think'ft thou? and what has he sent now?

4 -to borrow so many talents.] Such is the reading of the folio. The modern editors read arbitrarily, fifty talents. So many is not an uncommon colloquial expreffion for an indefinite numSTEEVENS. ber. The ftranger might not know the exact fum.

yet bad be MISTOOK him, and fent him to me,] We should read, MISLOOK'D him,

i. e. overlooked, neglected to fend him.

WARBURTON.

I rather read, yet had he not miftook him, and fent to me.

JOHNSON.

Mr. Edwards proposes to read, yet had be MISSED him.

STEEVENS.

VOL. VIII.

Y

Ser.

Ser. He has only fent his prefent occafion now, my lord; requesting your lordship to fupply his inftant ufe with fo many talents."

Luc. I know his lordship is but merry with me; He cannot want fifty-five hundred talents.

Ser. But in the mean time he wants lefs, my lord. 7 If his occafion were not virtuous,

8

I fhould not urge it half fo faithfully.

Luc. Doft thou speak feriously, Servilius?
Ser. Upon my foul, 'tis true, fir.

Luc. What a wicked beaft was I, to disfurnish myfelf against fuch a good time, when I might have fhewn myself honourable? How unluckily it happened, that I fhould purchase the day before for a little part, and undo a great deal of honour? Servilius,

-with fo many talents.] Such again is the reading with which the old copy fupplies us. Probably the exact number of the talents wanted was not exprefsly fet down by Shakespeare. If this was the cafe, the player who reprefented the character spoke of the first number that was uppermoft in his mind; and the printer, who copied from the playhoufe books, put down an indefinite for the definite fum, which remained unfpecified. The modern editors read again in this inftance, fifty talents.

STEEVENS.

If his occafion were not virtuous,] Virtuous, for ftrong, forcible, preffing. WARBURTON. The meaning may more naturally be ;-If he did not want it for a good ufe. JOHNSON.

8

balf Je faithfully.] Faithfully, for fervently. Therefore, without more ado, the Oxford editor alters the text to fervently. But he might have feen, that Shakespeare used faithfully for fer vently, as in the former part of the fentence he had ufed virtuous for forcible. WARBURTON.

9 That I should purchase the day before for a little part, and unde a great deal of benour?] Though there is a feeming plaufible antithefis in the terms, I am very well affured they are corrupt at the bottom. For a little part of what? Honour is the only fubftan

tive that follows in the fentence. How much is the antithefis improved by the fenfe which my emendation gives?" That I fhould purchafe for a little dirt, and undo a great deal of hoTHEOBALD.

nour!"

vilius, now before the Gods, I am not able to do't. The more beast, I fay :-I was fending to use Lord Timon myself, these gentlemen can witnefs; but I would not, for the wealth of Athens, I had done it now. Commend me bountifully to his good lordfhip; and, I hope, his honour will conceive the fairest of me, because I have no power to be kind:and tell him this from me, I count it one of my greatest afflictions, that I cannot pleasure fuch an honourable gentleman. Good Servilius, will you befriend me fo far, as to ufe my own words to him? Ser. Yes, fir, I shall.

Luc. I'll look ye out a good turn, Servilius. [Exit Servilius. -True, as you faid, Timon is fhrunk, indeed; And he, that's once deny'd, will hardly fpeed. [Exit. 1 Stran. Do you obferve this, Hoftilius?

2 Stran. Ay, too well.

1 Stran. Why, this is the world's fport;

And just of the fame piece is every flatterer's foul: Who can call him his friend,

This emendation is received, like all others, by fir T. Hanmer, but neglected by Dr. Warburton. I think Theobald right in fufpecting a corruption; nor is his emendation injudicious, though perhaps we may better read, purchafe the day before for a little park. JOHNSON. 1-flatterer's fpirit] This is Dr. Warburton's emendation. The other editions read,

Why this is the world's foul ;

Of the fame piece is every flatterer's fport.

Mr. Upton has not unluckily tranfpofed the two final words, thus, Why, this is the world's sport:

Of the fame piece is ev'ry flatterer's foul.

The paffage is not fo obfcure as to provoke fo much enquiry. This, fays he, is the foul or spirit of the world: every flatterer plays the fame game, makes port with the confidence of his friend.

JOHNSON.

I have adopted Upton's tranfpofition rather than Dr. Warbur ton's alteration.

Y 2

STEEVENS.

That