Now could thou and I rob the thieves, and go merrily to London, it would be argument for a week', laughter for a month, and a good jeft for ever.

Henry IV. P. 1, A. 2, S. 2.

You call me-misbeliever, cut-throat dog,
And fpit upon my Jewish gaberdine,
And all for use of that which is mine own.

Merchant of Venice, A. 1, S. 3.

Hath not a Jew eyes? hath not a Jew hands; organs, dimenfions, fenfes, affections, paffions? fed with the fame food, hurt with the fame weapons, fubject to the fame difeafes, heal'd by the fame means, warm'd and cool'd by the fame winter and fummer, as a Christian is?

Merchant of Venice, A. 3, S. 1.

JE WE L.

The jewel that we find, we stoop and take it,
Because we see it; but what we do not fee,
We tread upon, and never think of it.

Measure for Measure, A. 2, S. 1. A diamond gone, coft me two thousand ducats in Frankfort! two thousand ducats in that; and other precious, precious jewels. I would, my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels in her ear!

Merchant of Venice, A. 3, S. 1. Good name, in man, and woman, dear my lord, Is the immediate jewel of their fouls;

Who fteals my purse, steals trash; 'tis fomething, nothing;

1

Argument for a week.] Argument is fubject matter for a drama.
STEEVENS.

"This will be argument for a week" muft mean, this will furnish converfation for a week,

P

A. B.

'Twas

"Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands : But he, that filches from me my good name, Robs me of that which not enriches him,

And makes me poor indeed.

Othello, A. 3, S. 3.

IGNORANCE.

Ignorance itfelf is a plummet o'er me*: ufe me as Merry Wives of Windfor, A.

you will.

If he have power,

Then vail your ignorance: if none, awake

5,

S. 5.

Your dangerous lenity.

Coriolanus, A. 3, S. 1.

There's nothing ill can dwell in fuch a temple.

1

Tempeft, A. 1, S. 2.

Ignorance itself is a plummet o'er me.] Though this be perhaps not unintelligible, yet it is an odd way of confeffing his defection, I fhould wish to read,

"Ignorance itself has a plume o'er me.” that is, I am fo depreffed, that ignorance itself plucks me, and decks itself with the spoils of my weakness. JOHNSON. If any alteration be neceffary, I think, ignorance itself is a planet o'er me, would have a chance to be right. Thus Bobadil excufes his cowardice; fure I was struck with a planet, for I had no power to touch my weapon. FARMER.

Perhaps Falftaff's meaning may be this, ignorance itself is a plummet o'er me, i. e. above me,---ignorance itself is not fo low as am by the length of a plummet line. TYRWHIT.

Falftaff certainly means, that ignorance triumphs over him. We must therefore read, plumet, Fr. a garland. "Ignorance "itself is a plumet o'er me," i. e. ignorance wears the garland.

A. B.

2 Then vail your ignorance.] The sense of the paffage is, If this man has power, let the ignorance that gave it him, vail or bow down before him. JOHNSON.

Dr. Johnson's interpretation feems wrong. To vail, is here to hide, and ignorance is used for weakness. If this man has really the power he pretends to (fays Coriolanus), then hide or conceal your weakness; but if he has, in fact, no authority, then exereife yours. A. B.

IMAGE

IMAGE.

If I had thought, the fight of my poor image Would thus have wrought you, (for the ftone is mine)

I'd not have fhew'd it'. Winter's Tale, A. 5, S. 3.

IMAGINATION.

When he shall hear she dy'd upon his words,
The idea of her life fhall fweetly creep

Into his study of imagination.

Much ado about nothing, A. 4, S. 1.

Princes have but their titles for their glories,
An outward honour for an inward toil;
And, for unfelt imaginations,

They often feel a world of restless cares,

Richard III. A. 1, S. 4.

Alas, poor Yorick!-I knew him, Horatio; a fellow of infinite jeft, of moft excellent fancy: he hath borne me on his back a thousand times; and now, how abhorr'd in my imagination it is! my gorge rifes at it. Here hung thofe lips, that I have kifs'd I know not how oft. Hamlet, A. 5, S. I

If I had thought the fight of my poor image Would thus have wrought you, (for the ftone is mine) I'd not have fhew'd it.] I do not know whether we should not read without a parenthefis,

for the ftone i' th' mine

"I'd not have fhew'd it."

A mine of ftone, or marble, would not, perhaps, at prefent, be efteemed an accurate expreffion, but it may still have been used by Shakespeare, as it has been used by Hollingshed.

TYRWHIT.

To change an accurate expreffion for an expreffion confeffedly not accurate, has fomewhat of retrogradation.

JOHNSON.

"Stone i' th' mine," is furely the more forcible and elegant reading; but Mr. Tyrwhit explains his reading wrong. "i' th' mine," is diamond, not marble.

P 2

"Stone A. B.

The

The lunatic, the lover, and the poet,

Are of imagination all compact.

Midfummer Night's Dream, A. 5, S. 1.

The poet's eye in a fine frenzy rolling,

Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to hea

ven;

And, as imagination bodies forth

The forms of things unknown, the poets pen
Turns them to fhapes, and gives to airy nothing
A local habitation, and a name.

I

I.

Midsummer Night's Dream, A. 5, S. 1. How this grace (viewing a picture) Speaks its own standing! what a mental power This eye fhoots forth! how big imagination Moves in this lip! to the dumbness of the gefture One might interpret. Timon of Athens, A. 1, S. 1.

likewife.

I

How this grace

INFANT.

Speaks its own ftanding!] This relates to the attitude of the figure; and means that it ftands judiciously on its own centre. And not only fo, but that it has a graceful standing WARBURTON. This fentence feems to me obfcure, and however explained, not very forcible. This grace Speaks its own ftanding, is only The gracefulness of this figure fhews how it ftands. I am inclined to think fomething is corrupted.

JOHNSON. This paffage, to my apprehenfion at least, Speaks its own meaning, which is, how the graceful attitude of this figure proclaims that it stands firm on its centre, or gives evidence in fa

vour of its own fixure!

STEEVENS.

No one, I prefume, is ignorant of the meaning of grace among painters; nor is he to be informed, that without this very effential requifite, a picture, however finely coloured, would be held, by connoiffeurs, in little efteem. I am therefore inclined to explain the paffage thus-Here is grace indeed. Here he fhews ber ftanding-i. e. her rank and importance.

2

to the dumbness of the gefture

A. B.

One might interpret.] The allufion is to the puppetfhows, or motions, as they were termed in our author's time.

The

INFA N T.

First the infant,

Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms:

And then the whining school-boy, with his fatchel, And shining morning face, creeping like snail Unwillingly to school.

As you like it, A. 2, S. 7.

This royal infant, (heaven still move about her!).
Though in her cradle, yet now promifes
Upon this land a thousand thousand bleffings,
Which time shall bring to ripenefs; she shall be
(But few now living can behold that goodness)
A pattern to all princes living with her,

And all that shall fucceed.

Henry VIII. A. 5, S. 4.

INGRATITUDE.

In common worldly things, 'tis call'd-ungrateful
With dull unwillingness to repay a debt,
Which with a bounteous hand was kindly lent;
Much more, to be thus oppofite with heaven,
For it requires the royal debt it lent you.

Richard III. A. 2, S. 2.

And do you now put on your best attire?
And do you now cull out a holiday?
And do you now ftrew flowers in his way,
That comes in triumph over Pompey's blood?
Run to your houses, fall upon your knees,

The perfon who spoke for the puppets was called an interpre
MALONE.

ter.

The fenfe of the paffage is—this is nothing more than a picture; yet fuch is the liveliness of the reprefentation, that the figure feems almoft to speak, and we readily comprehend the painter's meaning. I do not fee that this has any reference to puppet-shows, motions, or interpreters.

P.3

A. B.

Pray