-one who never

"Had mooted in the hall, or seen the revels 66 Kept in the house at Christmas." Again, in the Return from Parnassus, 1606:

"It is a plain case whereon I mooted in our temple."

Again, "at a mooting in our temple." Ibid.

And yet all that I believe is meant by a mountain of affection, is a great deal of affection.

In one of Stanyhurst's poems, is the following phrase to denote a large quantity of love:

"Lumps of love promist, nothing perform'd;" &c. Again, in the Renegado, by Massinger :

-'tis but parting with

"A mountain of vexation."

Thus in K. Henry VIII. “a sea of glory." In Hamlet,

a sea of trouble." Again, in Howel's History of Venice: "though they see mountains of miseries heaped on one's back.” Again, in Bacon's History of King Henry VII. “Perkin sought to corrupt the servants to the lieutenant of the tower by mountains of promises." Again, in the Comedy of Errors: "the mountain of mad flesh that claims marriage of me." Little can be inferr'd from Shakspere's offence against grammar.

Mr. Malone observes, that, "Shakspere has many phrases equally harsh. He who would hazard such expressions as a storm of fortunes, a vale of years, and a tempest of provocation, would not scruple to write a mountain of affe&tion."

STEEVENS,

375.

-a noble strain,- -] i. e. descent, lineage.

--

So, in the Fairy Queen, B. IV. c. viii. s. 33.

66 Sprung from the auncient stocke of prince's straine."

Again, B. V. c. ix. s. 3o.

"Sate goodly temperaunce in garments clene,
"And sacred reverence yborne of heavenly
strene "

416. Bora. Go then, find me a meet hour to draw Don Pedro, and the count Claudio, alone: tell them that you know Hero loves me ;-Offer them instances, which shall bear no less likelihood than to see me at her chamberwindow; hear me call Margaret, Hero; hear Margare term me Claudio; and bring them to see this, the very night before the intended wedding :] Thus the whole stream of the editions from the first quarto downwards. I am obliged here to give a short account of the plot depending, that the emendation I have made may appear the more clear and unquestionable. The bu siness stands thus: Claudio, a favourite of the Ar ragon prince, is by his intercessions with her father, to be married to fair Hero; Don John, natural brother of the prince, and a hater of Claudio, is in his spleen zealous to disappoint the match. Borachio, a rascally dependant on Don John, offers his assistance, and engages to break off the marriage by this stra tagem. "Tell the prince and Claudio (says he) that Hero is in love with me; they won't believe it: offer them proofs, as, that they shall see me converse with her in her chamber-window. I am in the good graces

of

of her waiting-woman, Margaret; and I'll prevail with Margaret, at a dead hour of night, to personate her mistress Hero; do you then bring the prince and Claudio to overhear our discourse; and they shall have the torment to hear me address Margaret by the name of Hero; and her say sweet things to me by the name of Claudio.”. This is the substance of Borachio's device to make Hero suspected of disloyalty, and to break off her match with Claudio. But, in the name of common sense, could it displease Claudio, to hear his mistress making use of his name tenderly? If he saw another man with her, and heard her call him Claudio, he might reasonably think her betrayed, but not have the same reason to accuse her of disloyalty. Besides, how could her naming Claudio, make the prince and Claudio believe that she lov'd Borachio, as he desires Don John to insinuate to them that she did? The circumstances weighed, there is no doubt but the passage ought to be reformed, as I have settled in the text-hear me call Margaret, Hero; hear Margaret term me Borachio. THEOBALD.

I am not convinced that this exchange is necessary. Claudio would naturally resent the circumstance of hearing another called by his own name; because, in that case, baseness of treachery would appear to be aggravated by wantonness of insult; and, at the same time he would imagine the person so distinguished to be Borachio, because Don John was previously to have informed both him and Don Pedro, that Borachio was the favoured lover. STEEVENS.

457. carving the fashion of a new doublet.] This folly, so conspicuous in the gallants of former ages, is laughed at by all our comick writers. So in Greene's Farewell to Folly, 1617: "We are almost as fantastick as the English gentleman that is painted naked, with a pair of sheers in his hand, as not being resolved after what fashion to have his coat cut."

STEEVENS. The English gentleman in the above extract alludes to a plate in Borde's Introduction.

460. -orthography.

REED.

orthographer;] The old copies read STEEVENS. 474. and her hair shall be of what colour it please, &c.] Perhaps Benedick alludes to a fashion, very common in the time of Skakspere, that of dying the hair.

Stubbs, in his Anatomy of Abuses, 1595, speaking of the attires of women's heads, says: "If any have haire of her owne naturall growing, which is not faire ynough, then will they die it in divers collours."

STEEVENS.

481. Pedro. See where Benedick hath hid himself? Claudio. 0, very well, my lord: the musick ended, we'll fit the kid-fox with a penny-worth.] i. e. we will be even with the fox now discovered. So the word

kid, or kidde, signifies in Chaucer :

"The soothfastness that now is hid,
"Without coverture shall be kid
"When I undoen have this dreming."

Romaunt of the Rose, 2171, &c.
"Perceiv'd

"Perceiv'd or shew'd.

"He kidde anon his bone was not broken."

Troilus and Cresseide, lib. i. 208.

"With that anon sterte out daungere,

"Out of the place where he was hidde;
"His malice in his cheere was kidde."

Romaunt of the Rose, 2130.

GREY.

It is not impossible but that Shakspere chose, on this occasion, to employ an antiquated word; and yet, if any future editor should choose to read-hid fox, he may observe that Hamlet has said-" Hide fox and all after." STEEVENS.

A kid-fox seems to be no more than a young fox or REMARKS.

cub.

539.

-Stalk on, stalk on, the fowl sits.] This is an allusion to the stalking-horse; a horse either real or factitious, by which the fowler anciently shelter'd himself from the sight of the game.

So, in the Honest Lawyer, 1616:

"Lye there thou happy warranted case

"Of any villain. Thou hast been my stalking

horse

"Now these ten months."

Again, in the 25th Song of Drayton's Polyolbion: "One underneath his horse to get a shoot doth

stalk."

Again, in his Muses Elysium:

"Then underneath my horse, I stalk my game

to strike."

Dij

STEEVENS.

Again,