A lover's ear will hear the lowest Sound, Still climbing trees in the Hefperides"? the fufpicious head of theft is ftopt.] i, e. a lover in pursuit of his mistress has his fenfe of hearing quicker than a thief (who fufpects every found he hears) in pursuit of his prey. But Mr. Theobald fays, there is no contrast between a lover and a thief: and therefore alters it to thrift, between which and love, he fays, there is a remarkable antithefts. What he means by contraft and antithefis, I confefs I don't underfland. But 'tis no matter: the common reading is fenfe; and that is better than either one or the other. WARB. 2 For Valour is not Love a Hercules, Still climbing Trees in the Hef perides? The Poet is here obferving how all the fenfes are refined by Love. But what has the poor Senfe of Smelling done, not to keep its Place among its Brethren? Then Hercules's Valour was not in climbing the Trees, but in attacking the Dragon gardant. I rather think that for valour we fhould read favour, and the Poet meant that Hercules was allured by the Odour and Fragrancy of the golden Apples. THEOBALD. Mark, 3 As bright Apollo's lute, ftrung with his hair :) This expreffion, like that other in the Two Gentlemen of Verona, of Orpheus' harp was firung with poets finues, is extremely beautiful, and highly figurative. A pollo, as the fun, is represented with golden hair; fo that a lute ftrung with his hair means no more than ftrung with gilded wire. WARBURTON. 4 And when Love Speaks the voice of all the Gods, Make, Heav'n drowfie with the harmony!] This nonfenfe we should read and point thus, And when love speaks the voice of all the Gods, Mark, heav'n drowfie with the harmony. i. e. in the voice of love alone is included the voice of all the Gods. Alluding to the ancient Theogony, that love was the parent and fupport of all the Gods. Hence, as Suidas tells us, Palcephatus wrote a poem called, 'Appuding "Ega? own sy λóy@. The voice and Speech of Venus and Love, which appears to have been a kind of Cofmogony, the harmony of which Mark, Heaven drowfy with the harmony! From womens eyes this doctrine I derive: For charity itself fulfils the law; And who can fever love from charity? King. Saint Cupid, then! and, foldiers, to the field! Biron. Advance your ftandards, and upon them, Lords; is fo great that it calms and allays all kinds of disorders; alluding again to the ancient ufe of mufic, which was to compofe monarchs, when, by reason of the cares of empire, they used to pafs whole nights in restless inquietude. WARBURTON. The ancient reading is, make beaven. → a word, THAT LOVES ALL MEN;] We should read, A word all WOMEN love. the following line The antithefis of a word that all men love, and a word which loves all men, though in itself worth Or for men's fake (the author little, has much of the spirit of of these women ;) this play. N 2 Pell Pell-mell, down with them; but be first advis'd, Long. Now to plain-dealing-lay thefe glozes byShall we refolve to woo these girls of France ? King. And win them too; therefore let us devise Some entertainment for them in their Tents. Biron. First, from the Park let us conduct them Then homeward every man attach the hand We will with some strange pastime folace them, corn; And justice always whirls in equal measure; Light wenches may prove plagues to men forfworn ; If so, our copper buys no better treasure *. [Exeunt. WARBURTON. 6-fown cockle reap'd no corn;] lowing lines lead us to this sense. This proverbial expreffion intimates, that beginning with jury, they can expect to reap nothing but falfhood. The fol per *Here Mr. Theobald ends the third act. ACT ACT V. SCENE I. The STREET. Enter Holofernes, Nathanael and Dull. HOLOFERNES. Satis quod fufficit God for you, Sir, your reafens at Nath. I praise dinner have been sharp and fententious; pleafant without fcurrility, witty without affectation, audacious without impudency, learned without opinion, and ftrange without herefy. I did converfe this quondam-day with a companion of the King's, who is entitled, nominated, or called, Don Adriano d'Armado. Hol. Novi hominem, tanquam te. His humour s lofty, his difcourfe peremptory, his tongue filed, his eye ambitious, his gait majestical, and his general behaviour vain, ridiculous, and thrafonical. He is too piqued, too fpruce, too affected, too odd, as it were ; too peregrinate, as I may call it. Nath. A moft fingular and choice epithet. [Draws out his table book, Hol. He draweth out the thread of his verbofity finer than the ftaple of his argument. I abhor fuch phanatical phantafms, fuch infociable and point-devise companions; fuch rackers of orthography, as to speak dout fine, when he fhould fay, doubt; det, when he fhould pronounce debt; d, e, b, t; not, d, e, t: he clepeth a calf, cauf: half, hauf: neighbour vocatur nebour; neigh abbreviated ne: this is abominable ', which he would call abhominable: it infinuateth me 2 this is abominable, &c.] He has here well imitated the language of the most redoubtable pedants of that time. On fuch fort of occafions, Jofeph Scaliger ufed to break out, Abominor, execror, Afinitas mera eft, impi etas, &c. and calls his adverfary Lutum ftercore maceratum, De moniacum retrimentum infeitia, Sterquilinium, Stercus Diaboli, Scarabæum, Larvam, Pecus pof tremum beftiarum, infame propu dium, κάθαρμα. WARB. In former Editions: It infinuateth me of infamy: Ne intelligis, Domine, to make fran. tick, lunatick? Nath. Laus Deo, bene intelligo. Hol. Bome, boon for boon Prescian; a little Scratch, 'twill ferve.] This Play is certainly none of the beft in itself, but the Editors have been fo very happy in making it worse by their Indolence, that they have left me Augeas's Stable to cleanse: and a Man had need to have the Strength of a Hercules to heave out all their Rubbish. But to |