Alon. Not I. Gon. Faith, sir, you need not fear: When we were boys, Who would believe that there were mountaineers, Dew-lapp'd like bulls, whose throats had hanging at them Wallets of flesh? or that there were such men, Whose heads stood in their breasts? which now we find, Each putter-out on five for one,4 will bring us Alon. Thunder and lightning. Enter ARIEL like a Harpy; claps his wings upon the table, and, by quaint device, the Banquet vanishes. Ari. You are three men of sin, whom destiny, [Seeing ALON. SEB. &c. draw their swords. And even with such like valour, men hang and drown Their proper selves. You fools! I and my fellows Are ministers of fate; the elements Of whom your swords are temper'd, may as well Wound the loud winds, or with bemock'd-at stabs Kill the still-closing waters, as diminish (called in Greek powi;) for it was assured unto me, that the said bird died with that tree, and revived of itselfe as the tree sprung againe."-Holland's Translation of Pliny, B. xiii. C. 4. 1 Certainly. 2 Wonder. 3" Praise in departing," is a proverbial phrase signifying, Do not praise your entertainment too soon, lest you should have reason to retract your commendation. 4. Each putter-out on five for one," i. e. each traveller; it appears to have been the custom to place out a sum of money upon going abroad to be returned with enormous interest if the party returned safe; a kind of insurance of a gambling nature. 5 Bailey, in his dictionary, says that dowle is a feather, or rather the single particles of the down. Coles, in his Latin Dictionary, 1679, interprets young dowle by Lanugo. And in a history of most Manual Arts, 1661, wool and dowle are treated as synonymous. Tooke contends that this word and others of the same form are nothing more than the past participle of deal; and Junius and Skinner both derive it from the same. I fully believe that Tooke is right; the provincial word dool One dowles that's in my plume; my fellow min isters Are like invulnerable: if you could hurt, from (Which here, in this most desolate isle, else falls Upon your heads,) is nothing, but heart's sorrow, And a clear life ensuing. He vanishes in Thunder: then, to soft music, enter the Shapes again, and dance with mops and mowes, and carry out the table. Pro. [Aside.] Bravely the figure of this harpy hast thou Perform'd, my Ariel; a grace it had, devouring: work, And these, mine enemies, are all knit up [Exit PROSPERO from above. Gon. I' the name of something holy, sir, why stand you In this strange stare? Alon. O, it is monstrous! monstrous The winds did sing it to me; and the thunder, Methought, the billows spoke, and told me of it; That deep and dreadful organ-pipe, pronounc'd The name of Prosper; it did bass my trespass. Therefore my son i' the ooze is bedded; and I'll seek him deeper than e'er plummet sounded, And with him there lie mudded. Seb. I'll fight their legions o'er. Ant. [Erit But one fiend at a time, I'll be thy second. [Exeunt SEB. and ANT. Gon. All three of them are desperate; their great guilt, Like poison given to work a great time after, Follow, I pray you. Exeunt. is a portion of unploughed land left in a field; Coles, in his English Dictionary, 1701, has given dowel as a cant word, and interprets it deal. I must refer the reader to the Diversions of Purley for further proof. 6 A clear life; is a pure, blameless, life. 7 With good life, i. e. with the full bent and energy of mind. Mr. Henley says that the expression is still in use in the west of England. 8 The natives of Africa have been supposed to be possessed of the secret how to temper poisons with such art as not to operate till several years after they were administered. Their drugs were then as certain in their effect as subtle in their preparation. "Extasie or 9 Shakspeare uses ecstasy for any temporary alienation of mind, a fit, or madness. Minsheu's definition of this word will serve to explain its meaning wherever it occurs throughout the following pages. trance; G. extase; Lat. extasis, abstractio mentis. Est proprie mentis emotio, et quasi ex statione sua deturbatio seu furore, eu admiratione, seu timore, aliove casu decidat." Guide to the Tongues, 1617. ACT IV. TEMPEST. SCENE I-Before Prospero's Cell. Enter PROS- Against an oracle. I do believe it, Pro. Then, as my gift, and thine own acquisition No sweet aspersion shall the heavens let fall For quiet days, fair issue, and long life, Ari. What would my potent master? here I am. service Did worthily perform; and I must use you Pro. Ay, with a twink. go, 1 The same expression occurs in Pericles. Mr. Henley says that it is a manifest allusion to the zones of the ancients, which were worn as guardians of chastity before marriage. 2 Aspersion is here used in its primitive sense of prinkling, at present it is used in its figurative sense of throwing out hints of calumny and detraction. 3 Suggestion here means temptation or wicked prompting. 4 "Some ranity of mine art " is some illusion. Thus ta a passage, quoted by Warton, in his Dissertation the Gesta Romanorum, from Emare, a metrical Romance. "The emperor said on high 5 That is, bring more than are sufficient. "Corollary, the addition or vantage above measure, an overplus, surplusage."-Blount. 6 Stover is fodder for cattle, as hay, straw, and the ke: estorers is the old law term, it is from estouvier, old French. 7 The old editions read Pioned and Twilled brims. La Ovid's Banquet of Sense, by Geo. Chapman, 1595, we meet with -Caplike twill-pants strew'd in Bacchus bowers." Iftill be the name of any flower, the old reading may stand, Mr. Henley strongly contends for the old reading, and explains pioned to mean faced up with mire in the manner that ditchers trim the banks of ditches: twilled 7 Ari. Well I conceive. [Exit. Pro. Well.- A Masque. Enter IRIS. Whose shadow the dismissed bachelor loves, grace, To come and sport: her peacocks fly amain ; Cer. Hail, many-colour'd messenger, that ne'er Cer. If Venus, or her son, as thou dost know, he derives from the French verb touiller, which Cot- 8 That is, forsaken by his lass. 9 Mr. Douce remarks that this is an elegant expan- "Dame rainbow down therefore with safron wings of luxuriant hedge-rows and copses. 1 1 Jun. Honour, riches, marriage-blessing, Scarcity and want shall shun you; Fer. This is a most majestic vision, and Pro. Spirits, which by mine art Let me live here ever; So rare a wonder'd' father, and a wife, [JUNO and CERES whisper, and send IRIS on Pro. Iris. You nymphs, call'd Naiads, of the wand'ring With your sedg'd crowns, and ever harmless looks, Answer your summons ; Juno does command: Enter certain Nymphs. You sun-burn'd sicklemen, of August weary, Come hither from the furrow, and be merry; 1 Foison is abundance, particularly of harvest corn. 2 For charmingly harmonious. 3" So rare a wonder'd father," is a father able to produce such wonders. 4 Crisp channels; i. e. curled, from the curl raised by a breeze on the surface of the water. So in 1 K. Hen. IV. Act i. Sc. 3. "Hid his crisp head in the hollow bank." 6 In the tragedy of Darius, by Lord Sterline, ed in 1603, is the following passage: "Let greatness of her glassy sceptres vaunt Enter certain Reapers, properly habited: they join Pro. [Aside.] I had forgot that foul conspiracy Fer. This is strange: your father's in some That works him strongly. Mira. Never till this day, Saw I him touch'd with anger so distemper'd. Bear with my weakness; my old brain is troubled. If you be pleas'd, retire into my cell, We wish your peace. Pro. Come with a thought:-I thank you: Ariel, come. Enter ARIEL. Ari. Thy thoughts I cleave to: What's thy plessure? Pro. Spirit, We must prepare to meet with Caliban. Ari. Ay, my commander: when I presented I thought to have told thee of it; but I fear'd, Pro. Say again, where didst thou leave these Ari. I told you, sir, they were red-hot with drinking; So full of valour, that they smote the air For breathing in their faces; beat the ground It is evident that one poet imitated the other, and it Not sceptres, no, but reeds, soon bruised soon of princes or other festive occasions; they were exhibt broken; And let this worldly pomp our wits enchant, All fades, and scarcely leaves behind a token. Those stately courts, those sky-encountering walls, The preceding stanza also contains evidence of the same "And when the eclipse comes of our glory's light, Then what avails the adoring of a name? A meer illusion made to mock the sight, Whose best was but the shadow of a dream." Advanc'd their eye-lids, lifted up tneir noses, Which enter'd their frail shins: at last I left them Pro. This was well done, my bird: The trumpery in my house, go, bring it hither, Ari. may not Hear a foot fall: we now are near his cell. Ste. Monster, your fairy, which, you say, is a harmless fairy, has done little better than play'd the Jack with us. Trin. Monster, I do smell all horse-piss; at which my nose is in great indignation. If I Ste. So is mine. Do you hear, monster? should take a displeasure against you; look you,Trin. Thou wert but a lost monster. Cal. Good my lord, give me thy favour still: Be patient, for the prize I'll bring thee to Shall hood-wink this mischance; therefore, speak softly, All's hush'd as midnight yet. Trin. Ay, but to lose our bottles in the pool,Ste. There is not only disgrace and dishonour in that, monster, but an infinite loss. Trin. That's more to me than my wetting: yet this is your harmless fairy, monster. Trin. Do, do: We steal by line and level, and't like your grace. Ste. I will fetch off my bottle, though I be o'er ears for my labour. Cal. Pr'ythee, my king, be quiet: Seest thou here, This is the mouth of the cell: no noise, and enter: Do that good mischief, which may make this island Thine own for ever, and I, thy Caliban, For aye thy foot-licker. Ste. Give me thy hand: for I do begin to have bloody thoughts. Ste. I thank thee for that jest; here's a garment for't: wit shall not go unrewarded, while I am king of this country: Steal by line and level, is an excellent pass of pate; there's another garment for't. Trin. Monster, come, put some lime upon your fingers, and away with the rest. Cal. I will have none on't: we shall lose our time, Trin. O king Stephano! O peer! O worthy Ste. Put off that gown, Trinculo; by this hand, Trin. Thy grace shall have it. Cal. The dropsy drown this fool! what do you mean, To doat thus on such luggage? Let it alone, Ste. Monster, lay-to your fingers; help to bear this away, where my hogshead of wine is, or I'll turn you out of my kingdom: go to, carry this. Trin. And this. Ste. Ay, and this. A noise of Hunters heard. Ste. Be you quiet, monster.-Mistress line, is not this my jerkin? Now is the jerkin under the line: now, jerkin, you are like to lose your hair, and prove a bald jerkin. Enter divers Spirits in shape of hounds, and hunt them about; PROSPERO and ARIEL setting them on. Pro. Hey, Mountain, hey! Ari. Silver! there it goes, Silver! Pro. Fury! Fury! there, Tyrant, there! hark, hark! [CAL. STE. and TRIN. are driven out. Go, charge my goblins that they grind their joints With dry convulsions; shorten up their sinews With aged cramps; and more pinch-spotted make them, 1 Stale, in the art of fowling, signified a bait or lure to decoy birds. 2 Nurture is Education, in our old language. 3 To play the Jack, was to play the Knave. Than pard, 10 or cat o' mountain. 4 This is a humorous allusion to the old ballad "King Stephen was a worthy peer," of which Iago sings a verse in Othello. 5 A shop for the sale of old clothes.-Fripperie, Fr. The barnacle is a kind of shell-fish, lepas anati Ari. Hark, they roar Pro. Let them be hunted soundly: At this hour Lie at my mercy all mine enemies : Shortly shall all my labours end, and thou Shalt have the air at freedom: for a little, Follow, and do me service. [Exeunt. Enter PROSPERO in his magic robes, and ARIEL. Pro. Now does my project gather to a head: My charms crack not; my spirits obey; and time Goes upright with his carriage. How's the day? You said our work should cease. Ari. On the sixth hour; at which time, my lord, Pro. your cell: When first I rais'd the tempest. Say, my spirit, Dost thou think so, spirit? Satire of his fourth Book "That Scottish barnacle, if I might choose, That of a worm doth wax a winged goose." Gerrard, in his Herbal, 1597, p. 1391, gives a full description of it; and the worthy Dr. Bullein treats those as ignorant and incredulous, who do not believe in the transformation.-Bulwarke of Defence, 1562. Caliban's Barnacle is the clakis, or tree-goose. 9 See Tyrwhitt's Chaucer, Note on v. 6441. 10 Pard, i. e. Leopard. 11 Defends it from the weather. 12 i. e. Until you release them. 13 A sensation. Though with their high wrongs I am struck to the | Will shortly fill the reasonable shores, quick, Yet, with my nobler reason, 'gainst my fury, In virtue than in vengeance: they being penitent, Ari. And ye, that on the sands with printless foot time Is to make midnight-mushrooms; that rejoice A solemn air, and the best comforter Now useless, boil'd within thy skull! There stand, For you are spell-stopp'd. Holy Gonzalo, honourable man, Mine eyes, even sociable to the shew of thine, To him thou follow'st; I will pay thy graces You brother mine, that entertain'd ambition, tian (Whose inward pinches therefore are most strong,) Would here have kill'd your king; I do forgive thee, Unnatural though thou art!-Their understanding Begins to swell; and the approaching tide 1 This speech is in some measure borrowed from Medea's, in Ovid; the expressions are, many of them in the old translation by Golding. But the exquisite fairy imagery is Shakspeare's own. 2 That is; ye are powerful auxiliaries, but weak if left to yourselves. Your employments are of the trivial nature before mentioned. 8 So in Mids. Night's Dream "Lovers and madmen have such seething brains." 4 Remorse is pity, tenderness of heart; nature is natural affection. 5 This was the received opinion so in Fairfax's Tasso, B. iv St. 18. I That now fie foul and muddy. Not one of them, That yet looks on me, or would know me :-Ariel, Fetch me the hat and rapier in my cell; [Exit ARIEL. I will dis-case me, and myself present, ARIEL re-enters, singing, and helps to attire Ari. Where the bee sucks, there suck 1; There I couch when owls do cry. Merrily, merrily, shall I live now, Under the blossom that hangs on the bough. Pro. Why, that's my dainty Ariel; I shall miss Inhabits here: Some heavenly power guide us Out of this fearful country! Pro. Behold, sir king, Or some enchanted trifle to abuse me, Be living, and be here? Pro. First, noble friend, age; whose honour cannot Let me embrace thine Gon. Or be not, I'll not swear. Pro. Whether this be, You do yet taste Seb. Pro. The devil speaks in him. [Aside. "The goblins, fairies, fiends, and furies mad, 6 Whether. 7 Subtilties are quaint deceptive inventions; the word is common to ancient cookery, in which a disguised or ornamented dish is so termed. 9 The unity of time is most rigidly observed in this piece. The fable scarcely takes up a greater number of hours than are employed in the representation. Mr. Steevens thinks that Shakspeare purposely designed to show the cavillers of the time, that he too could write a play within all the strictest laws of regularity. |