* Lear. Didit thou give all to thy daughters ? and art thou come to this? Didlt thou give them all? Kent. He hath no daughters fir. nature SCENE VI. On Man. (19) Is man no more than this? Consider him well. Thou ow'st the worm no filk, the beast no hide, the Theep no wool, the cat no perfume. Ha! here's three of us are sophisticated. Thou art the thing itself: unaccommodated man is no more but such a poor, bare, forked animal as thou art. Off, off, you lendings: come unbutton here. The Justice of Providence. That I am wretched, Let (18) I have given the Reader all the most beautiful passages of this celebrated part of the tragedy, and have avoided any comments on it, as its beauties are so striking, and so generally commended; however, if he thinks proper, he may, by consulting Mr. Smith's translation of Longinus, find some observations there, not unworthy his regard. See the 3d note on the rotha section. (19) Is man, &c.] See Measure for Meafüre, Let the fuperfluous and lust-dieted man, SCENE III. Patience and Sorrow. Patience and sorrow strove That 1 (20) That Naves, &c.] Mr. Warburton is for reading, braves here : but he still forgets how frequently Shakespear makes verbs of substantives, and instead of endeavouring to explain his author's words, immediately has recourse to the easy art of altering, when there is any difficulty: by Naves your ordinance, the poet means, makes a Nave of your ordinance : “ makes it subfervient, as Mr. Upion obferves, to his superfluities and Justs.” (21) Were like a bitter day.] So the old editions read ; Mr. Werburton fays, “ without question we should read, A wetter May Her smiles and tears That play'd on her ripe lip, seem'd not to know Scene IV. Description of Lear distracted. (22) Alack, 'tis he; why, he was met even now SCENE VI. Description of Dover-Cliff. Come on, fir; here's the place -stand still. Hosy fearful Gloster's which is the most probable word that occurs at present, tho' I advance it not with any degree of certainty. He speaks of a shequcr'd svadow, in Titus Andronicus, Act. 1. Sc. 4. (22) Alack, &c.] See. Hamlei, A. 4. S. 10. and the note, 1 uri! (23) O, you mighty gods! Scene VII. Lear, in his Madness, on the gross Flatterers of Princes. Ha! Goneril! ha! Regan! they flattered me like a dog, and told me I had white hairs in my beard, ere the black ones were there. To fay, ay, and no, to every thing that I faid Ay, and no too, was no good divinity. When the rain came to wet me once, and the wind to make me chatter; when the thunder would not peace at my bidding; there I found 'em, there I fmelt 'em out. Go to, they are not (24) men o'their words; (23) Gbfier is afterwards convinced of bis mistake, and confirmed in the duty of sufferance : he says; I do remember now: henceforth I'll bear Eriough, enough, and die. At the end of the Oedipus, Coloneus of Sophocles, there is a fine refection like this; Το φερον εκ Θεο, &c. With resignation, nor consume with sorrow. (24) See Ad 2. Sc. 6. foregoing. Mr. Upion, mifled by the beginning of this speech; and apprehending the king, in his madness used exact connection, tells us we should not read, men o’their words, but women of their words: whereas it is plain, he words; they told me, I was every thing: 'tis a lie, I am not ague-proof. On the Abuse of Power. Thou rascal beadle, hold thy bloody hand : Why dost thou lafh that whore? strip thine own back; Thou hotly lust'rt to ufe her in that kind, For which thou whipp'it her. The usurer hangs the cozener. Through tatter'd cloaths finall vices do appear; Robes and furr'd gowns hide all. Plate fins with gold, And the strong lance of justice hurtless breaks : Arm it in rags, a pigmy's straw doth pierce it. None does offend, none, I say, none; I'll able 'em ;) Take that of me, my friend, who hath the pow'r To seal th' accuser's lips. Get thee glass eyes, And, like a scurvy politician, seem To see the things thou dost not, SCENE X. Cordelia on the Ingratitude of her Sisters. O, my dear feather, restoration hang And he runs off from the thoughts of his daugħters to those who flattered him, and all through the speech speaks of them only: the criticism is fcarce worth remarking, except it be to shew, how subject all of us are to mistakes, and how littie reason the very wifet have to triumph over the errors of others. |