The braveft queftant fhrinks, find what you feek,
That fame may cry you loud: I fay, farewell.

2 Lord. Health, at your bidding, ferve your majefty!
King. Thofe girls of Italy, take heed of them;
They fay, our French lack language to deny,
If they demand: beware of being captives,
Before you ferve,3

Both.
Our hearts receive your warnings.
King. Farewell.-Come hither to me.

[The King retires to a couch. 1 Lord. he corrects himself and fays, I except those from that precedency, who enly inherit the fall of the last monarchy; as all the little petty states; for inftance, Florence, to whom thefe volunteers were going. As if he had faid, I give the place of honour to the emperor and the pope, but not to the free ftates. WARBURTON.

Sir T. Hanmer reads:

Thofe baftards that inherit, &c. with this note :

"Reflecting upon the abject and degenerate condition of the cities and states which arofe out of the ruins of the Roman empire, the last of the four great monarchies of the world."

Dr. Warburton's obfervation is learned, but rather too subtle; Sir Thomas Hanmer's alteration is merely arbitrary. The paffage is confeffedly obfcure, and therefore I may offer another explanation. I am of opinion that the epithet higher is to be understood of fituation rather than of dignity. The fenfe may then be this, Let upper Italy, where you are to exercife your valour, fee that you come to gain boncur, to the abatement, that is, to the difgrace and depreffion of thofe that have now loft their ancient military fame, and inherit but the fall of the laft monarchy. To abate is used by Shakspeare in the original sense of abatre, to depress, to fink, to deject, to fubdue; and bated is used in a kindred fenfe in Ibe Merchant of Venice: a bondman's key,

With bated breath, and whisp'ring humbleness."

The word has ftill the fame meaning in the language of the law.

JOHNSON.

In confirmation of Johnfon's opinion, that bigher relates to fituation, not to dignity, we find in the third fcene of the fourth Act, that one of the Lords fays, What will Count Roufillon do then? will he travel bigber, or return again to France ?" M. MASON.

Thofe 'bated may here fignify" thofe being taken away or excepted." Bate, thus contracted, is in colloquial language ftill ufed with this meaning. This parenthetical fentence implies no more than they excepted whe poffefs modern Italy, the remains of the Roman empire. HOLT WHITE.

3 The word ferve is equivocal; the fenfe is, Be not captives before yo ferve in the war. Be not captives before you are foldiers. JOHNSON.

1 Lord. O my fweet lord, that you will stay behind us! Par. 'Tis not his fault; the fpark—

2 Lord.

O, 'tis brave wars!

Par. Moft admirable: I have feen thofe wars..

Ber. I am commanded here, and kept a coil with; Too young, and the next year, and 'tis too early.

Par. An thy mind ftand to it, boy, fteal away bravely.
Ber. I fhall ftay here the forehorse to a smock,
Creaking my fhoes on the plain mafonry,

Till honour be bought up, and no fword worn,
But one to dance with!4 By heaven, I'll fteal away.
I Lord. There's honour in the theft.

Par.

Commit it, count,

2 Lord. I am your acceffary; and fo farewell.

Ber. I grow to you, and our parting is a tortured body,s 1 Lord. Farewell, captain.

2 Lord. Sweet monfieur Parolles !

Par. Noble heroes, my fword and yours are kin.. Good fparks and luftrous, a word, good metals :-You fhall find in. the regiment of the Spinii, one captain Spurio, with his cicatrice, an emblem of war, here on his finifter cheek; it was this very fword entrench'd it: fay to him, I live; and obferve his reports for me..

2 Lord. We fhall, noble captain.

Par. Mars dote on you for his novices! [Exeunt Lords.] What will you do?

Ber. Stay; the king[Seeing him rife.. Par. Ufe a more fpacious ceremony to the noble lords; you have reftrain'd yourself within the lift of too cold an adieu: be more expreffive to them; for they wear themselves

C 5

in

It should be remembered that in Shakspeare's time it was usual for. gentlemen to dance with fwords on. MALONE.

5 I read thus-Our parting is the parting of a tortured body. Our parting is as the difruption of limbs torn from each other. Repetition of a word is often the cause of mistakes: the eye glances on the wrong word,. and the intermediate part of the sentence is omitted. JOHNSON,

As they grow together, the tearing them afunder was torturing a body. Johnson's amendment is unneceflary. M. MASON.

We two growing together, and having, as it were, but one body. ("like to a double cherry, feeming parted,") our parting is a tortured: body; i. e. cannot be effected but by a difruption of limbs' which are now common to both, MALONE.

in the cap of the time, there do mufter true gait, eat, fpeak, and move under the influence of the most received ftar; and though the devil lead the measure 7 fuch are to be follow'd : after them, and take a more dilated farewell.

Ber. And I will do fo.

Par. Worthy fellows; and like to prove moft finewy fwords[Exeunt BERTRAM and PAROLLES.

men.

Enter LAFEU.

Laf. Pardon, my lord, [Kneeling.] for me and for my

tidings.

King. I'll fee thee to stand up.

Laf.
Then here's a man
Stands, that has brought his pardon. I would, you
Had kneel'd my lord, to ask me mercy; and
That, at my bidding, you could fo ftand up.

King. I would I had; fo I had broke thy pate,
And ask'd thee mercy for't.

Laf.

6 The main obfcurity of this paffage arifes from the mistake of a fingle letter. We should read, instead of, do mufter, to muster.To wear them-. felves in the cap of the time, fignifies to be the foremost in the fashion: the figurative allufion is to the gallantry then in vogue, of wearing jewels, flowers, and their mistress's favours in their caps.- There to mußter true gait, fignifies to affemble together in the high road of the fashion. the reft is intelligible and eafy, WARBURTON.

All

I think this emendation cannot be faid to give much light to the obfcurity of the paffage. Perhaps it might be read thus:-They do mufter with the true gait, that is, they have the true military ftep. Every man has obferved fomething peculiar in the strut of a foldier. JOHNSON.

Perhaps we fhould read-mafter true gait. To mafter any thing, is to learn it perfectly. STEEVENS.

The obfcurity of the paffage arifes only from the fantastical language of a character like Parolles, whofe affectation of wit urges his imagination from one allufion to another, without allowing time for his judgement to determine their congruity. The cap of time being the first image that Occurs, true gait, manner of eating, fpeaking, &c. are the feveral ornaments which they mufter, place, or arrange in time's cap. This is done under the influence of the most received ftar; that is, the perfon in the highest repute for fetting the fashions :-and though the devil were to lead the measure or dance of fashion, fuch is their implicit fubmiffion, that even he muft be followed. HENLEY.

7 lead the meafure,] i. e. the dance. STIEVINS,

Laf.

Good faith, acrofs:8

But, my good lord, 'tis thus; Will you be cur'd

Of your infirmity?

King.

Laf.

No.

O, will you eat
No grapes, my royal fox? yes, but you will,
My noble grapes, an if my royal fox
Could reach them :9 I have feen a medicine,
That's able to breathe life into a stone;
Quicken a rock, and make you dance canary,3
With fpritely fire and motion; whofe fimple touch
Is powerful to araife king Pepin, nay,

To give great Charlemain a pen in his hand,
And write to her a love line.

King.

What her is this?

Laf. Why, doctor fhe: My lord, there's one arriv'd,
If you will fee her, now, by my faith and honour,
If feriously I may convey my thoughts

In this my light deliverance, I have spoke
With one, that, in her fex, her years, profeffion,4
Wisdom, and conftancy, hath amaz'd me more

8 This word as has been already obferved, is used when any pass of wit mifcarries. JOHNSON.

While chivalry was in vogue, breaking spears against a quintain was a favourite exercife. He who fhivered the greatest number was esteemed the most adroit; but then it was to be performed exactly with the point, for if atchieved by a fide-stroke or across, it showed unfkilfulness, and difgraced the practifer. Here, therefore, Lafeu reflects on the King's wit as aukward and ineffectual, and, in the terms of play, good for nothing. HOLT WHITE.

9 The words My noble grapes, feem to Dr. Warburton and Sir T. Hanmer to ftand fo much in the way, that they have filently omitted them. They may be indeed rejected without great lofs, but I believe they are Shakspeare's words. You will eat, fays Lafeu, no grapes. Yes, but you will eat fuck noble grapes, as I bring you, if you could reach them..

2

3

JOHNSON.

medicine,] is here put for a fhe phyfician. HANMER. and make you dance canary,] Mr. Rich. Broome, in his comedy entitled, The City Wit, or the Woman wears the Breeches, A& IV. fc. i. mentions this among other dances; "As for corantoes, lavoltos, jigs, meafures, pavins, brawls, galliards or canaries; I fpeak it not fwel lingly, but I fubscribe to no man.” Dr. GREY.

4 By profeffion is meant her declaration of the end and purpose of her coming. WARBURTON.

Than I dare blame my weakness: Will you fee her,
(For that is her demand,) and know her business?
That done, laugh well at me.

King.
Now, good Lafeu,
Bring in the admiration; that we with thee
May fpend our wonder too, or take off thine,
By wond'ring how thou took'st it.

Laf.

And not be all day neither.

Nay, I'll fit you,

[Exit LAFEU.

King. Thus he his fpecial nothing ever prologues.

Re-enter LAFEU, with HELENA.

Laf. Nay, come your ways.

King.

This hafte hath wings indeed.

Laf. Nay, come your ways;
This is his majesty, fay your mind to him:
A traitor you do look like; but fuch traitors
His majesty seldom fears: I am Creffid's uncle,
That dare leave two together; fare you well.

King. Now, fair one, does your business follow us?
Hel. Ay, my good lord. Gerard de Narbon was
My father; in what he did profefs, well found."
King. I knew him.

[Exit

Hel. The rather will I fpare my praises towards him;
Knowing him, is enough. On his bed of death
Many receipts he gave me; chiefly one,

Which, as the dearest iffue of his practice,
And of his old experience the only darling,
He bad me ftore up, as a triple eye,8

Safer than mine own two, more dear; I have fo:
And, hearing your high majesty is touch'd

With

"To acknow

3 This is one of Shakspeare's perplexed expreffions. ledge how much she has aftonished me, would be to acknowledge a weaknefs; and this I am unwilling to do." STEEVENS.

Lafeu's meaning appears to me to be this : That the amazement The excited in him was fo great, that he could not impute it merely to his own weakness, but to the wonderful qualities of the object that occafioned it." M. MASON.

6

Creffid's uncle, I am like Pandarus. JOHNSON. 7 i. e. of known, acknowledged, excellence. STEEVENG triple eye,] i. s. a third eye. STEEVENS.