Edg. Pillicock fat on pillicock-hill, Halloo, halloo, loo, loo! Fool. This cold night will turn us all to fools and madmen. Edg. Take heed o' th' foul fiend. Obey thy parents. Keep thy word juftly. Swear not. Commit not with man's fworn fpoufe. Set not thy fweet-heart on proud array. Tom's a-cold.. Lear. What haft thou been? 6 Edg. A ferving-man, proud in heart and mind; that curl'd my hair, wore gloves in my cap, ferv'd the luft of my miftrefs's heart, and did the act of darkness with her; fwore as many oaths as I fpake words, and broke them in the fweet face of heav'n. One that slept in the contriving luft, and wak'd to do it. Wine lov'd I deeply; dice dearly; and in woman, out-paramour'd the Turk. Falfe of heart, 7 light of ear, bloody of hand; hog in sloth, fox in ftealth, wolf in greedinefs, dog in madness, lion in prey. Let not the creaking of fhoes, nor the rustling of filks, betray thy poor heart to woman. Keep thy foot out of brothels, thy hand out of plackets, thy pen from lenders' books, and defy the foul fiend. Still through the hawthorn blows the cold wind: fays fuum, mun, nonny, dolphin my boy, boy, Seffey: let him trot by. [Storm Still. 8 6 avore gloves in my cap.] That is, his Miftrefs's favours: which was the fashion of that time. So in the play called Campafpe, Thy men turned to women, thy Joldiers to lovers, gloves worn in velvet caps, inflead of plumes in graven belmets. WARBURTON. light of ear, i. e. creduWARBURTON. fays fuum, mun, nonny, &c.] Of this paffage I can make nothing. I believe it corrupt: for wildness, not nonfenfe, is the effect of a difordered imagination. The quarto reads, bay no on ny, lous. Dolphins, my boy, ceafe, let him trot by. Of interpreting this there is not much hope or much need But any thing. may be tried. The mad-man, now counterfeiting a proud fit, fuppofes himself met on the road by fome one that difputes the way, and cries Hey!-Nobut altering his mind condefcends to let him pafs, and calls to his boy Dolphin [Rodolph] not to contend with him. OnDolphin, my boy, ceafe. Let him trot by. Lea... Lear. Thou wert better in thy grave, than to answer with thy uncover d body this extremity of the skies. Is man no more than this? Confider him well. Thou ow ft the worm no filk, the beatt no hide, the sheep no wool, the cat no pertume. Ha! here's three of us are fophifticated, thou art the thing itfelf; unaccommodated man is no more but fuch a poor, bare, forked anin al as thou art. Off, off, you lendings. Come. Unbutton here. [Tearing off his clothes Fidl Pry'thee, nuncle, be contented; 'tis a naughty` night to iwim in. Now a little fire in a wild field were like an old letcher's heart, a small spark, and all the reit on's body cold. Look, here comes a walking fire. Edg. This is the foul Flabbertigibbet; he begins at curfew, and walks till the firft cock. He gives the web and the pin, iquints the eye, and makes the hair lip: mildews the white wheat, and hurts the poor creature of the earth. 9 Saint Withold footed th ice the Wold, SCENE Saint Withold footed thrice the wold, He met the night-mare, and her NAME TOLD, Bid ber alight, and her troth pligh', And aroynt thee, witch, aroynt thee RIGHT. i.e. Saint Withold traverfing the Wold or Downs, met the nightmare; who having told her name, he obliged her to alight. from thofe perfons whom the rides, and pught her troth to do no more mifchief. This is taken from 1 2 SCENE VII. Enter Glo'fter, with a Torch. Lear. What's he? Kent. Who's there? what is't you feek? Edg. Poor Tom, that eats the fwimming frog, the toad, the tadpole; the wall-newt, and the waternewt; that in the fury of his heart, when the fout fiend rages, cats cow-dung for fallets, fwallows the old rat, and the ditch dog, drinks the green mantle of the standing pool; who is whipt from tything to tything, and ftock-punifh'd, and imprifon'd: who bath had three fuits to his back, fix fhirts to his body; 3. Horfe to ride, and weapon to wear; 2. But mice, and rats, and fuch fmall decr from a ftory of him in his le- Saint George, Saint George, He walks by day, fo he does by And when he had her found, plight, She would not fir from him that night. WARBURTON. In the old quarto the corrup tion is fuch as may deferve to be noted. Swithold footed thrice the old another night Moore and ber nine fold bid ber, O light, and her troth plight, and arint thee, with arint thee. a small deer] Sir Thomas Hanmer reads geer, and is followed by Dr. Warburton. But deer in old language is a general word for wild animals. Be Beware my follower. Peace, Smolkin, peace, thou fiend! Glo. What, hath your Grace no better company? Edg. The Prince of Darkness is a gentleman; M bu he's called, and Mahu. Glo. Our flesh and blood, my Lord, is grown fo vile, That it doth hate what gets it. Edg. Tom's a-cold. Glo. Go in with me, my duty cannot suffer T'obey in all your daughters' hard commands; Though their injunction be to bar my doors, And let this tyrannous night take hold upon you, Yet have I ventur'd to come seek you out, And bring you, where both fire and food is ready." Lear. First let me talk with this Philofopher. -What is the caufe of thunder? Kert. My good Lord, take his offer. Go into th' houfe. Lear. I'll talk a word with this fame learned Theban. -What is your ftudy? Edg. How to prevent the fiend, and to kill vermin. Lear. Let us afk you one word in private. Kent. Importune him once more to go, my Lord. His wits begin t'unfettle. Glo. Canft thou blame him. [ Storm fiй. His Daughters feek his death. Ah, that good Kent! He faid, it would be thus-poor banifh'd man! Thou fay'ft, the King grows mad, I'll tell thee, friend, I'm almost mad myfelf, I had a fon, Now out-law'd from my blood; he fought my life, But lately, very late; I lov'd him, friend, No father his fon dearer. True to tell thee, The grief hath craz'd my wits. What a night's this? I do befeech your Grace. Lear. O cry you mercy, Sir.! Noble Philofopher, your company. Edg. Tom's a-cold. Glo. In, fellow, into th' hovel; keep thee warmi 'Lear. Come, let's in all. Kent. This way, my Lord. I will keep ftill with my Philofopher. Kent. Good my Lord, footh him; let him take the fellow. Glo. Take him you on. Kent. Sirrah, come on; along with us. Lear. Come, good Athenian. Glo. No words, no words, hufh. 3 Edg. Child Rowland to the dark tower came, His word was ftill fy, fok, and fum, I fmell the blood of a British man. Corn. T I SCENE, VIII. Changes to Glo'fter's Castle. [Exeunt. Will have revenge, ere I depart his house. Edm. How, my Lord, I may be cenfur'd that Nature thus gives way to loyalty, fomething fears me to think of. Corn. I now perceive, it was not altogether your brother's evil difpofition made him feek his death; 4 but a provoking merit, fet a-work by a reprovable badness in himself. This word is in fome of our ballads. There is a fong of Child Walter, and a Laay. 3. Child Rowland-] In the maker tranflated, Child Roland. old times of chivalry, the noble youth who were candidates for WARBURTON. knighthood, during the feafon of their probation, were called Infans, Varlets, Damoyjels, Bacheliers. The moft noble of the youth particularly, Infans. Here a ftory is told, in fome old ballad, of the famous hero and giant-killer Roland, before he was knighted, who is, therefore, called Infans; which the bailad a merit which being neglected 4 but a provoking merit,] i.e. by the father, was provoked to ford Edi or, not understanding an extravagant act. The Oxthis, alters it to provoked spirit. WARBURTON. Edm. |