P. 50. (17) 66 Myself would, on the rearward of reproaches, i. e. I would follow up the reproaches I cast upon you, by slaying you myself. -So the 4to.-The folio, by a misprint, has". the reward of reproaches,” &c.-The Ms. Corrector substitutes " the hazard of reproaches," &c.,— which, says Mr. Collier, "appears to be the true reading"! Leonato, I should suppose, was not likely, in his then state of mind, to trouble himself about the reproaches he might incur; and indeed, if his thoughts had but glanced at the consequences of such an act, he must have been aware that a gentleman who kills his own daughter does it "on the hazard" of something heavier than reproaches. P. 50. (18) "And salt too little that may season give For "her foul-tainted flesh" Mr. Collier's Ms. Corrector substitutes "her soultainted flesh," which (like his substitution of "soul-pure" for "sole-pure” in Troilus and Cressida, act i. sc. 3) can only be regarded as an ingenious attempt to improve the language of Shakespeare,—or, in other words, as a piece of mere impertinence.-Be it observed that Leonato, who now uses the expression, "her foul-tainted flesh," presently goes on to say, "Would the two princes lie? and Claudio lie, Who lov'd her so, that, speaking of her foulness, With "foul-tainted" we may compare "foul-defilèd” in our author's Rape of Lucrece, "The remedy indeed to do me good, Is to let forth my foul-defiled blood." P. 51. (19) "A thousand blushing apparitions start," &c. The old copies have, by a manifest mistake, 66 apparitions to start." Lest it should be supposed that in this well-known passage I have accidentally omitted a word, I may notice that I adopt the reading of the folio.—The modern editors give, with the 4to, "as anie is in Messina." In my Few Notes, &c. p. 46, I have said, "Here Mr. Knight, alone of the modern editors, follows the old copies in printing fashion-monging,'-and rightly," &c. but now, on considering the inconsistency in spelling which those old copies exhibit, I think that the other modern editors have done more wisely. P. 65. (*) "Art thou the slave that with thy breath hast killed --- Mine innocent child?” So the 4to. The folio has "Art thou thou the slave," &c. (which Mr. Knight pronounces to be an "exquisite repetition"). P. 70. (25) 66 Pardon, goddess of the night, Here Mr. Collier's Ms. Corrector alters "virgin knight" to "virgin bright,”— how improperly, will be evident to any one who consults the notes ad l. in the Variorum Shakespeare.-I may mention that we have already had "night" used as a rhyme to "knight" in The Merry Wives of Windsor, act ii. sc. 1. And Hymen now with luckier issue speed's," &c. Here the old copies have ". speeds:" but (unless we change "weeds" to "weed" and "speeds" to "speed") there seems to be no other course than to follow the advice of Thirlby, who says: "Claudio could not know, without being a prophet, that this new proposed match should have any luckier event than that designed with Hero. Certainly, therefore, this should be a wish in Claudio; and, to this end, the poet might have wrote speed's, i. e. speed us : and so it becomes a prayer to Hymen.” The modern editors (more unforgiving than Leonato) exclude Margaret from the present assembly, though the old copies mark both her entrance here and her re-entrance afterwards with the other ladies. (In what is said of her at the commencement of the scene there is nothing which would lead us to suppose that the poet intended her to be absent.) P. 72. (2) "Ant. This same is she, and I do give you her.” Here the old copies have the prefix "Leo.": which is at variance with the words of Leonato in the preceding page, "You know your office, brother: You must be father to your brother's daughter, Mr. Collier retains the prefix of the old copies, and observes, "Though Antonio was formally to give away the lady at the altar, as her pretended father, Leonato may very properly interpose this observation." But the line must be characterised as something more than an "observation": nor does the ceremony at the altar form any portion of the play.—And see notes (16), (31). 66 P. 73. (29) "One Hero died defil'd; but I do live," &c. The word "defil'd" has dropt out from the folio, but is found in the 4to.— Now," says Mr. Collier, "it is most unlikely that Hero should herself tell Claudio that she had been 'defil'd;' and the word supplied by the Corrector of the folio, 1632, seems on all accounts much preferable :— 'One Hero died belied, but I do live.' Here we see the lady naturally denying her guilt, and attributing her death to the slander thrown upon her. Shakespeare's word must have been belied," &c. Why does Mr. Collier thus labour to deceive himself and his readers about the value of the Corrector's alterations? In the first place, there was no necessity that the lady should "deny her guilt" to one who had already a perfect conviction of her innocence; and, in the second place, the word “belied” is objectionable because it makes the gentle Hero indirectly reproach the repentant Claudio. P. 73. (30) "Have been deceived; for they swore you did." Here the word "for," which is wanting both in the 4to and in the folio, seems necessary for the sense,-to say nothing of the metre. But, even with that addition, I do not believe that we have the line as it came from Shakespeare's pen: the probability is, that he wrote, "Have been deceiv'd; for they did swear you did,”— which would correspond with what presently follows,— "Are much deceiv'd; for they did swear you did." The old copies have "Leon."-And see notes (16), (28). |