Be an arch villain: believe it, royal prince, Duke. By mine honesty, If the be mad, (as I believe no other) Ifab. Gracious duke, Harp not on that; nor do not banish reason* Duke. Many that are not mad, Have, fure, more lack of reafon.-What would you fay? Ifab. I am the fifter of one Claudio, Was fent to by my brother. One Lucio Lucio. That's I, an't like your grace: I came to her from Claudio, and defir'd her Ifab. That's he, indeed. Duke. You were not bid to fpeak. [To Lucio. Lucio. No, my good lord, nor wifh'd to hold my For inequality: -] you have Let not the high quality of my adversary prejudice you against me. And hide the false, seems true.] We should read, Not bide WARBURTON. JOHNSON. Α A business for yourself, pray heaven, you then Lucio. I warrant your honour. Duke. The warrant's for yourself; take heed to it. Ifab. This gentleman told fomewhat of my tale. Lucio. Right. Duke. It may be right; but you are in the wrong To speak before your time--Proceed. Ifab. I went To this pernicious caitiff deputy. Duke. That's fomewhat madly spoken. The phrafe is to the matter. Duke. Mended again: the matter ;-Proceed. Release my brother; and, after much debatement, And I did yield to him: But the next morn betimes, For my poor brother's head. Duke. This is most likely! How he refell'd me, -] To refel is to refute. Refellere et coarguere mendacium. Cicero pro Ligario. Ben Jonfon ufes the word: "Friends, not to refel you, "Or any way quell you." The modern editors changed the word to repel. Again, in The second Part of Robert Earl of Huntington, 1601. "Therefore go on, young Bruce, proceed, refell To bis concupifcible, &c.] Such is the old reading. The modern editors unauthoritatively fubflitute concupifcent. STEEVENS. Ifab. Oh, that it were as like, as it is true! Or else thou art fuborn'd against his honour In hateful practice. Firft, his integrity Stands without blemish :-Next, it imports no reason, Ifab. And is this all? Then, oh, you bleffed minifters above, ' In countenance! Heaven fhield your grace from woe, As I, thus wrong'd, hence unbelieved go ! Duke. I know, you'd fain be gone :-An officerTo prison with her :-Shall we thus permit A blasting and a scandalous breath to fall 4 Oh, that it were as like, as it is true!] Like is not here used for probable, but for feemly. She catches at the Duke's word, and turns it to another fenfe; of which there are a great many examples in Shakespeare, and the writers of that time. WARBURTON. I do not fee why like may not ftand here for probable, or why the lady fhould not wifh, that fince her tale is true, it may obtain belief. If Dr. Warburton's explication be right, we should read, O! that it were as likely, as 'tis true! Like I have never found for feemly. JOHNSON. * In bateful practice.] Practice was ufed by the old writers for any unlawful or infidious ftratagem. So again, and again, 2 This must needs be practice: Let me have way to find this practice out. JOHNSON. On On him fo near us? This muft needs be a practice. Ifab. One that I would were here, friar Lodowick. Lucio. My lord, I know him; 'tis a medling friar And to fet on this wretched woman here Against our fubftitute !-Let this friar be found. I faw them at the prifon :- Peter. Bleffed be your royal grace! I have stood by, my lord, and I have heard Duke. We did believe no lefs. Know you that friar Lodowick, which she speaks of? Not fcurvy, nor a temporary medler,. 6 -nor a temporary medler,] It is hard to know what is meant by a temporary medler. In its ufual fenfe, as oppofed to perpetual, it cannot be used here. It may stand for temporal: the fenfe will then be, I know him for a holy man, one that meddles not with fecular affairs. It may mean temporifing: I know him to be a holy man, one who would not temporife, or take the opportunity of your absence to defame you! Or we may read, Not feurvy, nor a tamperer and medler : not one who would have tampered with this woman to make her a falfe evidence againft your deputy. JOHNSON. As 1 As he's reported by this gentleman; Lucio. My lord, moft villainously; believe it. Peter. Well, he in time may come to clear himself, But at this inftant he is fick, my lord, Of a strange fever. Upon his mere request, To fpeak, as from his mouth, what he doth know 8 So vulgarly and perfonally accus'd, Her fhall you hear difproved to her eyes, Duke. Good friar, let's hear it. Do you not fmile at this, lord Angelo?- In "Whenever he's conven'd.-] The firft folio reads, convented, and this is right: for to convene fignifies to affemble; but convent, to cite, or fummons. Yet, because convented hurts the measure, the Oxford editor flicks to conven'd, tho' it be nonsense, and fignifies, Whenever he is affembled together. But thus it will be, when the author is thinking of one thing and his critic of another. The poet was attentive to his fenfe, and the editor, quite throughout his performance, to nothing but the meafure; which Shakespeare having entirely neglected, like all the dramatic writers of that age, he has fpruced him up with all the exactnefs of a modera measurer of fyllables. This being here taken notice of once for all, fhall, for the future, be forgot, as if it had never been. WARBURTON. So vulgarly-] Meaning either fo grofly, with fuch indecency of invective, or by fo mean and inadequate witneffes. JOHNSON. Come, coufin Angelo, In this I will be partial; &c.) In former editions, -Come |