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Quic. Are they fo? Heaven blefs them, and make them his fervants!

Fal. Well: mistress Ford;-what of her?

Quic. Why, fir, fhe's a good creature. Lord, lord! your worship's a wanton: Well, heaven forgive you, and all of us, I pray!

Fal. Miftrefs Ford;-come, miftrefs Ford,

Quic. Marry, this is the fhort and the long of it; you have brought her into fuch a canaries, as 'tis wonderful. The best courtier of them all, when the court lay at Windfor, could never have brought her to fuch a canary. Yet there has been knights, and lords, and gentlemen, with their coaches; I warrant you, coach after coach, letter after letter, gift after gift; fmelling fo fweetly, (all musk) and so rufling, I warrant you, in filk and gold; and in fuch alligant terms; and in fuch wine and fugar of the beft, and the fairest, that would have won any woman's heart; and, I warrant you, they could never get an eye-wink of her. I had myself twenty angels given me this morning but I defy all angels, (in any fuch fort as they fay) but in the way of honefty :-and, I warrant you, they could never get her fo much as fip on a cup with the proudeft of them all and yet there has been earls, nay, which is more, penfioners; but, I warrant you, all is one with her.

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Fal.

3-canaries, This is the name of a brifk light dance, and is therefore properly enough ufed in low language for any hurry or perturbation. JOHNSON.

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So, Nah, in Pierce Pennylefs bis Supplication, 1595, fays: "A merchant's wife jets it as gingerly, as if the were dancing the canaries:" and our author, in All's well, &c. "Make you dance canary. Again, in Decker's honeft Whore, 1635 At a place where your health danced the canaries." It is highly probable, however, that canaries is only a mistake of Mrs. Quickly's for quandaries; and yet the Clown, in, As you like it, fays, "we that are true lovers run into strange capers." STEEVENS,

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4 earls, nay, which is more, penfioners; -] This may be Alluftrated by a paffage in Gervafe Holles's Life of the First Earl of

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Fal. But what fays fhe to me? be brief, my good The Mercury.

Quic. Marry, the hath receiv'd your letter; for the which the thanks you a thoufand times: and the gives you to notify, that her husband will be abfence from his houfe between ten and eleven.

Fal. Ten and eleven.

Quic Ay, forfooth; and then you may come and fee the picture, the fays, that you wot of 5;-master Ford, her husband, will be from home. Alas! the fweet woman leads an ill life with him; he's a very jealoufy man; fhe leads a very frampold life with him, good heart.

Fal.

Clare. Biog. Brit. Art. HOLLES. "I have heard the earl of Clare fay, that when he was penfioner to the queen, he did not know a worse man of the whole band than himfelf; and that all the world knew he had then an inheritance of 4000l. a year." TYRWHITT.

Barrett, in his Alvearie, or Quadruple Dictionary, 1580, fays, that a fenfioner was "a gentleman about his prince alwaie redie, with his fpeare." STEEVENS.

5

-you wot of;

K. Henry VIII.

6

66

To wot is to know. Obfolete. So in -avot you what I found?" STEEVENS. frampold- ] This word I have never feen elsewhere, except in Dr. Hacket's Life of Archbishop Williams, where aframpul man fignifies a peevish troublesome fellow. JOHNSON.

In The Roaring Girl, a comedy, 1611, I meet with a word, which, though differently fpelt, appears to be the fame. Lax. "Coachman.

Coach. "Anon, fir!

Lax. "Are we fitted with good phrampell jades?"

Ray, among his South and Eaft country words, fays, that fram pald, or frampard, fignifies fretful, peevish, cross, froward. As froward (he adds) comes from from, fo may frampard.

Nah, in his Praife of the Red Herring, 1599, fpeaking of Leander, fays: "the churlish frampold waves gave him his belly. full of fish-broth."

So, in The Inner Temple Mafque, by Middleton, 1619:-"" "'tis fo frampole, the puritans will never yield to it." So, in The Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green, by John Day: "I think the fellow's frampell," &c. So, in B. and Fletcher's Wit at feveral Weapons: "Is Pompey grown fo malapert, fo frampel?"

Fal. Ten and eleven: Woman, commend me to her; I will not fail her.

Quic. Why, you fay well: But I have another meffenger to your worship: Mistress Page has her hearty commendations to you too ;-and let me tell you in your ear, fhe's as fartuous a civil modeft wife, and one (I tell you) that will not mifs you morning nor evening prayer, as any is in Windfor, whoe'er be the other: and the bade me tell your worship, that her husband is feldom from home; but, fhe hopes, there will come a time. I never knew a woman fo dote upon a man; furely, I think you have charms, la; yes, in truth.

Fal. Not I, I affure thee; fetting the attraction of my good parts afide, I have no other charms. Quic. Bleffing on your heart for't!

Fal. But, I pray thee, tell me this: has Ford's wife, and Page's wife, acquainted each other how they love me?

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Quic. That were a jeft, indeed!-they have not fo little grace, I hope :-that were a trick, indeed! But miftrefs Page would defire you to fend her your little page, of all loves; her husband has a marvellous infection to the little page: and, truly, mafter Page is

Again, in Ben Jonfon's Tale of a Tub:

66

I pray thee grow not frampul now." Again, in The Ile of Gulls, 1633:

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"Are you fo frampall, you know not your own daughter?” STEEVENS.

to fend her your little page, of all loves :- - Of all loves, is an adjuration only, and fignifies no more, than if she had faid, defires you to fend him by all means.

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It is used in Decker's Honeft Whore, Part I. 1635:ing his wife, of all loves, to prepare cheer fitting," &c. Again, in the old tranflation of Plautus's Menæchmi, 1595: 66 -Defire him, of all love, to come over quickly." Again, in Acolaftus, a comedy, 1529: "I pray thee, for all loves, be thou my mynde fens I am thyne." Again, in Holinfhed's Chronicle, p. 1064: Mrs. Arden defired him of all loves, to come backe againe." STEEVENS.

an honeft man. Never a wife in Windfor leads a better life than she does; do what the will, fay what she will, take all, pay all, go to bed when the lift, rise when the lift, all is as fhe will; and, truly, the deferves it; for if there be a kind woman in Windfor, fhe is one. You must fend her your page; no re

medy.
Fal. Why, I will.

Quic. Nay, but do fo then: and, look you, he may come and go between you both; and, in any case, have a nay-word, that you may know one another's mind, and the boy never need to understand any thing; for 'tis not good that children fhould know any wickedness: old folks, you know, have difcretion, as they fay, and know the world.

Fal. Fare thee well: commend me to them both: there's my purfe; I am yet thy debtor.-Boy, go along with this woman. This news diftracts me! Exeunt Quickly and Robin.

Pift. This pink is one of Cupid's carriers: Clap on more fails; purfue; up with your fights; Give fire; fhe is my prize, or ocean whelm them all! [Exit Piftol. Fal.

•] i. e. a watch-word. So in a fubfe. -We have a nay-word to know one another, &c."

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A nay-word,

quent fcene: 6

• In former editions,

This PUNK is one of Cupid's carriers:

STEEVENS.

Clap on more fails; purfue; up with your fights;

Give fire; he is my prize,] This punk is one of Cupid's carriers, is a plaufible reading, yet abfurd on examination. For are not all punks Cupids carriers? Shakespeare certainly

wrote:

This PINK is one of Cupid's carriers:

And then the fenfe is proper, and the metaphor, which is all the way taken from the marine, entire. A pink is a veffel of the fmall craft, employed as a carrier (and fo called) for merchants. Fletcher ufes the word in his Tamer Tamed:

Fal. Say'ft thou fo, old Jack? go thy ways; I'll make more of thy old body than I have done. Will they yet look after thee? Wilt thou, after the expence of fo much money, be now a gainer? Good body, I thank thee: Let them fay, 'tis grofsly done, fo it be fairly done, no matter.

"This PINK, this painted foift, this cockle-boat,
"To hang her fights out, and defy me, friends!
"A well known man of war.".

As to the word fights, both in the text and in the quotation, it was then, and, for ought I know, may be now, a common fea-term. Sir Richard Hawkins, in his voyages, p. 66, fays: "For once we cleared her deck, and had we been able to have spared but a dozen men, doubtlefs we had done with her what we would; for fhe had no close FIGHTS," i. e. if I understand it right, no small arms. So that by fights is meant any manner of defence, either fmall arms or cannon. So, Dryden, in his tragedy of Amboyna : "Up with your FIGHTS,

"And your nettings prepare, &c."

But, not confidering this, I led the Oxford editor into a filly conjecture, which he has done me the honour of putting into his text, which is indeed a proper place for it:

"Up with YOND FRIGAT." WARBURTON.

So, in The Ladies Privilege, 1640: "Thefe gentlemen know better to cut a caper than a cable, or board a pink in the Bordells, than a pinnace at fea." A small falmon is called a falmon-pink. STEEVENS.

The quotation from Dryden might at least have raised a fufpicion that fights were neither fmall arms, nor cannon. Fights and nettings are properly joined. Fights, I find, are cloaths hung round the fhip to conceal the men from the enemy, and clofe-fights are bulk-heads, or any other shelter that the fabrick of a ship affords. JOHNSON.

So, in Heywood and Rowley's comedy, called Fortune by Land and Sea:" difplay'd their enfigns, up with all their feights, their matches in their cocks," &c. So, in the Chriftian turned Turk, 1612: "Lace the netting, and let down the fights, make ready the flot, &c." Again, in the Fair Maid of the Weft, 1615: "Then now up with your fights, and let your enfigns, "Bleft with St. George's crofs, play with the winds." Again, in B. and Fletcher's Valentinian:

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while I were able to endure a tempeft, "And bear my fights out bravely, till my tackle "Whistled i' th' wind".

Enter

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