On Tuesday laft to liften after news. Bard. My lord, I over-rode him on the way, SCENE II. Enter Travers. North. Now, Travers, what good tidings come with you? Tra. My lord, Sir John Umfrevil turn'd me back With joyful tidings; and, being better hors'd, Out-rode me. After him came fpurring hard A gentleman, almost fore-spent with speed, That stopp'd by me to breathe his bloodied horfe; He afk'd the way to Chefter; and of him I did demand what news from Shrewsbury. He told me, that Rebellion had ill luck; And that young Harry Percy's Spur was cold: With that he gave his able horse the head, And, bending forward, ftruck his agile heels Against the panting fides of his poor jade Up to the rowel-head; and, ftarting fo, He feem'd in running to devour the way, Staying no longer question. North. Ha? -again Said he, young Harry Percy's fpur was cold? Bard. My lord, I'll tell you; If my young lord your fon have not the day, Rovel head.] I think that I have obferved in old prints the rowel of those times to have been only a fingle fpike. North North. Why fhould the gentleman, that rode by Travers, Give then fuch inftances of lofs? Bard. Who he? He was fome hilding fellow, that had ftoll'n SCENE III. Enter Morton. North. Yea, this man's brow, like to a title-leaf, Foretels the nature of a tragick volume. So looks the ftrond, whereon th' imperious flood Say, Morton, did'ft thou come from Shrewsbury? North. How doth my fon, and Brother? But in the end, to ftop mine ear indeed, North. Why, he is dead. See, what a ready tongue fufpicion hath. He, that but fears the thing he would not know, And I will take it as a sweet Difgrace, And make thee rich for doing me fuch wrong. 3 Your Spirit.] The impreffion upon your mind, by which you conceive the death of your fon. Yet for all this, fay not, &c.] The contradiction in the first part of this speech might be imputed to the diftraction of Northumberland's mind, but the calmnefs of the reflection, contained in the laft lines, seems not much to countenance fuch a fuppofition. I will venture to diftribute this paffage in a manner which will, I hope, feem more commodious, but do not wish the reader to forget, that the most commodious is not always the true reading. Bard. Yet for all this, fay not 1 nou fhak'ft thy head, and hold'st it fear, or fin, Bard. I cannot think, my lord, your fon is dead. Mort. I'm forry, I fhould force you to believe That, which, I would to heav'n, I had not feen; But these mine eyes faw him in bloody ftate, Rend'ring faint quittance, wearied and out-breath'd, To Henry Monmouth; whofe swift wrath beat down The never-daunted Percy to the earth, From whence, with life, he never more sprung up. Fear, for danger. WARBURTON, Which bold' it fear, or fin.] bis metal was abated, as well as his courage was abated. See what is faid on this fubject on Love's Labour Left, A&t V. If he be fiain, Jay .] The words fay fo are in the firft folio, but not in the quarto: they are neceflary to the verfe, but the fenfe proceeds as well without them. 7 For from his metal was his party feel'd; Which ence in him ABATED, -] The word metal is one of thofe hacknicd metaphorical terms, which refumes fo much of a literal fenfe as not to need the idea (from whence the figure is taken) to be kept up. So that it may with elegance enough be faid, But when the writer fhews, as here, both before and after, [-bis party peel'd· turn'd on themselves like dull and heavy lead] that his intention was not to drop the idea from whence he took his metaphor, then he cannot fay with propriety and elegance, his metal was a bated; becaufe what he predicates of metal, must be then convey'd in a term conformable to the metaphor. Hence I conclude that Sakespeare wrote, Which once in him abated, all the rest North. For this, I fhall have time enough to mourn; In poison there is phyfick, and this news, That would, had I been well, have made me fick, Out of his keeper's arms; ev'n fo my limbs, crutch; Which once in him REBATED, i.e. blunted. WARBURTON. Here is a great effort to produce little effect. The commentator does not feem fully to understand the word abated, which is not here put for the general idea of diminished, nor for the notion of blunted as applied to a VOL. IV. R fingle edge, but for reduced to a lower temper, or as the tvorkmen now call it, let down. It is very proper. 8 'Gan vail his ftomach,- -] Began to fall his courage, to let his fpirits fink under his fortune. 9buckle] Bend; yield to preffure. A fcaly |