King. Methinks, in thee some blessed spirit doth speak; In common sense, sense saves another way. Of what I spoke, unpitied let me die, And well deserv'd: 'Not helping, death's my fee; King. Make thy demand. Hel. But will you make it even? King. Ay, by my sceptre, and my hopes of heaven. What husband in thy power I will command: To choose from forth the royal blood of France; King. Here is my hand; the premises observ'd, More should I question thee, and more I must ; -Give me some help here, ho!-If thou proceed [Flourish. Exeunt. taken, and thence become the subject of odious ballads; let my maiden reputation be otherwise branded; and, no worse of worst extended, i. e. provided nothing worse is offered to me (meaning violation) let my life be ended with the worst of tortures. The poet, for the sake of rhyme, has obscured the sense of the passage. The worst that can befal a woman being extended to me, seems to be the meaning of the last line. STEEVENS. SCENE II. Rousillon. A Room in the Countess's Palace. Enter Countess and Clown. Count. Come on, sir; I shall now put you to the height of your breeding. Clo. I will show myself highly fed, and lowly taught: I know my business is but to the court. Count. To the court! why, what place make you special, when you put off that with such contempt ? But to the court! Clo. Truly, madam, if God have lent a man any manners, he may easily put it off at court: he that cannot make a leg, put off's cap, kiss his hand, and say nothing, has neither leg, hands, lip, nor cap; and, indeed, such a fellow, to say precisely, were not for the court: but, for me, I have an answer will serve all men. Count. Marry, that's a bountiful answer, that fits all questions. Clo. It is like a barber's chair, that fits all buttocks; the pin-buttock, the quatch-buttock, the brawn-buttock, or any buttock. Count. Will your answer serve fit to all questions?' Clo. As fit as ten groats is for the hand of an attorney, as your French crown for your taffata punk, as Tib's rush for Tom's fore-finger,3 as a pancake for ShroveTuesday, a morris for May-day, as the nail to his hole, the cuckold to his horn, as a scolding quean to a wrangling knave, as the nun's lip to the friar's mouth; nay, as the pudding to his skin. Count. Have you, I say, an answer of such fitness for all questions? Clo. From below your duke, to beneath your constable, it will fit any question. Count. It must be an answer of most monstrous size, that must fit all demands. Clo. But a trifle neither, in good faith, if the learned [3] The allusion is to an ancient practice of marrying with a rush ring, as well in other countries as in England. Breval, in his Antiquities of Paris, mentions it as a kind of espousal used in France, by such persons as meant to live together in a state of concubinage; but in England it was scarce ever practised except by designing men, for the purpose of corrupting those young women to whom they pretended love. Richard Poore, bishop of Salisbury, in his Constitutions, anni, 1217, forbids the putting of rush rings, or any the like matter, on women's fingers, in order to the debauching them more readily and he insinuates, as the reason for the prohibition, that there were some people weak enough to believe, that what was thus done in jest, was a real marriage. Sir J. HAWKINS. : should speak truth of it: here it is, and all that belongs to't: Ask me, if I am a courtier; it shall do you no harm to learn. Count. To be young again, if we could: I will be a fool in question, hoping to be the wiser by your answer. I pray you, sir, are you a courtier ? Clo. O Lord, sir,There's a simple putting off ;more, more, a hundred of them. Count. Sir, I am a poor friend of yours, that loves you. Clo. O Lord, sir,- -Thick, thick, spare not me. Count. I think, sir, you can eat none of this homely meat. Clo. O Lord, sir,-Nay, put me to't, I warrant you. Count. Do you cry, O Lord, sir, at your whipping, and spare not me? Indeed, your O Lord, sir, is very sequent to your whipping; you would answer very well to a whipping, if you were but bound to't. Clo. I ne'er had worse luck in my life, in my-O Lord, sir: I see, things may serve long, but not serve ever. Count. I play the noble housewife with the time, to entertain it so merrily with a fool. Clo. O Lord, sir-why, there't serves well again. Commend me to my kinsmen, and my son ; Clo. Not much commendation to them. Count. Not much employment for you: You understand me? Clo. Most fruitfully; I am there before my legs. SCENE III. Paris. A Room in the King's Palace. LAFEU, and PAROLLES. [Exeunt severally. Enter BERTRAM, Laf. They say, miracles are past; and we have our philosophical persons, to make modern and familiar things, supernatural and causeless. Hence is it, that we make trifles of terrors; ensconcing ourselves into [4] The lady censures her own levity in trifling with her jester, as a ridiculous attempt to return back to youth. JOHNSON. [5] A ridicule on that foolish expletive of speech then in vogue at court. WARBURTON. seeming knowledge, when we should submit ourselves to an unknown fear. Par. Why, 'tis the rarest argument of wonder, that bath shot out in our latter times. Ber. And so 'tis. Laf. To be relinquished of the artists, Par. So I say; both of Galen and Paracelsus. Laf. That gave him out incurable,— Par. Why, there 'tis ; so say I too. Laf. Not to be helped, Par. Right: as 'twere, a man assured of an Laf. Uncertain life, and sure death. Par. Just, you say well; so would I have said. Laf. I may truly say, it is a novelty to the world. Par. It is, indeed: if you will have it in showing, you shall read it in,-What do you call there ? Laf. A showing of a heavenly effect in an earthly actor. Par. That's it I would have said; the very same. Laf. Why, your dolphins is not lustier: 'fore me I speak in respect Par. Nay, 'tis strange, 'tis very strange, that is the brief and the tedious of it; and he is of a most facinorous spirit, that will not acknowledge it to be the Laf. Very hand of heaven. Par. Ay, so I say. Laf. In a most weak Par. And debile minister, great power, great transcendence: which should, indeed, give us a further use to be [7] Shakespeare, as I have often observed, never throws out his words at random. Paracelsus, though no better than an ignorant and knavish enthusiast, was at this time in such vogue, even amongst the learned, that he had almost jostled Galen and the ancients out of credit. On this account iearned is applied to Galen; and authentic, or fashionable, to Paracelsus. WARBURTON. As the whole merriment of this scene consists in the pretensions of Paroiles to knowledge and sentiments which he has not, I believe here are two passages in which the words and sense are bestowed upon him by the copies, which the author gave to Lafeu. I read this passage thus: Laf. To be relinquished of the artists Par. So I say. Laf. Both of Galen and Paracelsus, of all the learned and authentic fellows-→→→ Par. Right, so I say. JOHNSON. [8] By dolphin is meant the dauphin, the heir apparent, and the hope of the crown of France. His title is so translated in all the old books. STEEVENS. [9] Facinorous is wicked. STEEVENS. 3 VOL. IV. B 2 made, than alone the recovery of the king, as to beLaf. Generally thankful.' Enter King, HELENA, and Attendants. Par. I would have said it; you say well: Here comes the king. Laf. Lustick, as the Dutchman says: I'll like a maid the better, whilst I have a tooth in my head: Why, he's able to lead her a coranto. Par. Mort du Vinaigre! is not this Helen ? King. Go, call before me all the lords in court. [Exit an Attendant. Sit, my preserver, by thy patient's side; And with this healthful hand, whose banish'd sense Which but attends thy naming. Enter several Lords. Fair maid, send forth thine eye this youthful parcel O'er whom both sovereign power and father's voice Thou hast power to choose, and they none to forsake. King. Peruse them well: Not one of those, but had a noble father. Hel. Gentlemen, Heaven hath, through me, restor'd the king to health. [1] I believe Parolles has again usurped words and sense to which he has no right; and I read this passage thus: Laf. In a most weak and debile minister, great power, great transcendence ; which should, indeed, give us a further use to be made than the mere recovery of the king. Par. As to be- Laf. Generally thankful. JOHNSON. When the parts are written out for players, the names of the characters which they are to represent, are never set down; but only the last words of the preceding speech which belongs to their partner in the scene. If the plays of Shakespeare were printed (as there is reason to suspect) from these piece-meal transcripts, how easily may the mistake be accounted for, which Dr. Johnson has judiciously strove to remedy? STEEVENS. [2] Lustigh is the Dutch word for lusty, cheerful, pleasant. STEEVENS. [3] i. e. a bay, a docked horse. STEEVENS. |