Efcal. What news abroad i' the world? Duke. None, but that there is fo great a fever on goodnefs, that the diffolution of it muft cure it: novelty is only in requeft; and it is as dangerous to be aged in any kind of course, as it is virtuous to be conftant in any undertaking. There is fearce truth enough alive, to make focieties fecure; but fecurity enough, to make fellowships accurs'd: much upon this riddle runs the wisdom of the world. This news is old enough, yet it is every day's news. I pray you, fir, of what difpofition was the duke? Efcal. One, that, above all other ftrifes, contended efpecially to know himself. Duke. What pleasure was he given to? Efcal. Rather rejoicing to fee another merry, than merry at any thing which profefs'd to make him rejoice: a gentleman of all temperance. But leave we him to his events, with a prayer they may prove profperous; and let me defire to know, how you find Claudio prepared? I am made to understand, that you have lent him vifitation. Duke. He profeffes to have received no finifter measure from his judge, but moft willingly humbles himself to the determination of justice : yet had he framed to himself, by the inftruction of his frailty, many deceiving promises of life; which I, by my good leifure, have difcredited to him, and now is he refolved' to die. Efcal. You have paid the heavens your function, and the prifoner the very debt of your calling. I have labour'd for the poor gentleman, to the extremeft shore of my modefty; but my brother juftice have I found fo fevere, that he hath forced me to tell him, he is indeedjustice 2. Duke. If his own life answer the ftraitnefs of his proceeding, it shall become him well; wherein if he chance to fail, he hath fentenced himself. 2 Efcal. I am going to vifit the prifoner: fare you well. Duke. Peace be with you! [Exeunt ESCAL. and Prov. He, who the fword of heaven will bear, 1 Should be as holy as fevere; refolved] i. e. fatisfied. REED. -be is indeed-juftice.] Summum jus, fumma injuria. STEEVENS. Pattern Pattern in himself to know, Grace to ftand, and virtue go3; 3 Pattern in bimfelf to know, Craft Grace to ftand, and virtue go;] This paffage is very obscure, nor can be cleared without a more licentious paraphrafe than any reader may be willing to allow. He that bears the fword of heaven should be not less boly than fevere: fhould be able to difcover in himself a pattern of fuch grace as can avoid temptation, togerber with fub virtue as dares venture abroad into the world without danger of feduction. STEEVENS. "Pattern in himself to know," is, to experience in his own bofom an original principle of action, which, inftead of being borrowed or copied from others, might ferve as a pattern to them. Our author, in the Winter's Tale, has again ufed the fame kind of imagery: "By the pattern of mine own thoughts I cut out "The purity of his." In the Comedy of Errors he ufes an expreffion equally hardy and licentious" And will have no attorney but myself;"- which is an abfolute catachrefis; an attorney importing precifely a perfon appointed to act for another. MALONE. 4 To weed my vice, and let bis grow!] My, does not, I apprehend relate to the duke in particular, who had not been guilty of any vice, but to any indefinite perfon. The meaning feems to be To destroy by extirpation (as it is expressed in another place) a fault that I have committed, and to fuffer his own vices to grow to a rank and luxuriant height.→→ The fpeaker, for the fake of argument, puts himself in the case of an offending perfon. MALONE. 5 Though angel on the outward fide!] Here we fee what induced our author to give the outward-fainted deputythe nameof Angelo.MALONE. 6 How may likeness, made in crimes, Mocking, practife on the times, To draw with idle Spiders' frings Moft pondrous and fubftantial things!] The old copy reads-Making practife, &c. which renders the paffage ungrammatical, and unintelliVOL. II. G 2 gible. Craft against vice I must apply: [Exit. gible. For the emendation now made the prefent editor is answerable. A line in Macbeth may add fome fupport to it: "Away, and mock the time with faireft fhow." There is no one more convinced of the general propriety of adhering to old readings. I have ftrenuously followed the courfe which was pointed out and fuccefsfully purfued by Dr. Farmer and Mr. Steevens, that of elucidating and fupporting our author's genuine text by illuftrations drawn from the writings of his contemporaries. But in fome cafes alteration is a matter not of choice, but neceflity; and furely the prefent is one of them. Dr. Warburton, to obtain fome fenfe, omitted the word To in the third line; in which he was followed by all the subfequent editors. But omillion, in my apprehension, is, of all the modes of emendation, the most exceptionable.In the paffage before us, it is clear from the context, that fome verb must have ftood in either the first or second of thefe lines. Some years ago I conjectured that, instead of made, we ought to read wade, which was used in our author's time in the fenfe of to proceed. But having fince had occasion to observe how often the words mock and make have been confounded in these plays, I am now perfuaded that the single error in the prefent paffage is, the word Making having been printed instead of Mocking, a word of which our author has made very frequent ufe, and which exactly fuits the context. In this very play we have had make instead of mack. [See p. 21.] In the hand-writing of that time the small c was merely a straight line, fo that if it happened to be fubjoined and written very close to an the two letters might eafily be taken for an a. Hence I fuppofe it was, that these words have been fo often confounded.The aukwardness of the expreffion" Making practice," of which I have met with no example, may be likewife urged in fupport of this emendation. Likeness is here used for specious or feeming virtue. So, before: "O feeming, feeming!" The fenfe then of the paffage is,-How may perfons affuming the likeness or femblance of virtue, while they are in fa& guilty of the groffeßt crimes, impofe with this counterfeit fanity upon the world, in order to draw to themselves by the flimfieft pretenfions the moft folid advantages; i. e. pleasure, honour, reputation, &c.! In Much Ado about Nothing we have a fimilar thought a "O, what authority and fhow of truth. "Can cunning fin cover itfelf withall!" MALONE. 7 So difguife fball, by the difguis'd,] So 'difguife fhall, by means of a perfon difguifed, return an injurious demand with a counterfeit perfon. JOHNSON. ACT IV. SCENE I. A Room in Mariana's House. Enter MARIANA, and a Boy who fings. SONG. Take, oh, take thofe lips away, bring again, Seals of love, but feal'd in vain, feal'd in vain. Mari. Break off thy fong, and hafte thee quick away; Here comes a man of comfort, whofe advice Hath often ftill'd my brawling difcontent. Enter Duke. I cry you mercy, fir; and well could wish, [Exit Boy. You 1 Take, ob, take &c.] This is part of a little fong of Shakspeare's own writing, confifting of two ftanzas, and fo extremely fweet, that the reader won't be difpleafed to have the other. Hide, ob, bide these bills of snow, WARBURTON. This fong is entire in Beaumont's Bloody Brother. The latter ftanza is omitted by Mariana, as not fuiting a female character. THEOBALD. This fong is found entire in Shakspeare's Poems, printed in 1640; but that is a book of no authority: Yet I believe that both thefe ftanzas were written by our author. MALONE. Our poet has introduced one of the fame thoughts in his 142d fonnet: -not from thofe lips of thine "That have prophan'd their scarlet ornaments, "And feal'd falfe bonds of love, as oft as mine." STEEVENS. Again, in his Venus and Adonis: "Pure lips, fweet feals in my foft lips imprinted, "What bargains may I make, ftill to be fealing?" MALONE. It occurs alfo in the old black letter tranflation of Amadis of Gaule, G 3 quarto, You had not found me here fo mufical: Let me excufe me, and believe me fo,- To make bad, good, and good provoke to harm. I pray you, tell me, hath any body enquired for me here to-day? much upon this time have I promised here to meet. Mari. You have not been inquired after: I have fat here all day. Enter ISABELLA. Duke. I do conftantly 3 believe you :-The time is come, even now. I shall crave your forbearance a little; may be, I will call upon you anon for fome advantage to yourself. Mari. I am always bound to you. Duke. Very well met, and welcome. What is the news from this good deputy? [Exit. Ifab. He hath a garden circummur'd with brick 4, quarto, p. 171:-"rather with kiffes (which are counted the feals of love) they chofe to confirm their unanimitie, than otherwise to offend a refolved patience." REED. 2 My mirth it much difpleas'd, but pleas'd my woe.] Though the mufick footh'd my forrows, it had no tendency to produce light merriJOHNSON. ment. 3 4 5 conftantly-] Certainly, without fluctuation of mind. JOHNSON. circummur'd with brick,] Circummur'd, walled round. JOHNSON. -a planched gate,] i. e. a gate made of boards. Planche, Fr. STEEVENS. 6 There have I &c.] In the old copy the lines ftand thus: Duke |