Enter King Lear, Cornwall, Albany, Gonerill, Regan,

Cordelia, and Attendants.
Lear. Attend the Lords of France and Burgundy,

Gloster.
Glo. I hall, my Liege.

[Exit. Lear. Mean time we shall sexpress our darker pur

pose. Give me the map here. Know, we have divided, In three, our kingdom ; 6 and 'tis our fast intent, To shake all cares and business from our age, Conferring them on younger strengths, while we Unburden'd crawl tow’rd death. Our son of Corn

wall, And you, our no less loving son of Albany, We have this hour a constant will to publish Our daughters sev’ral dow'rs, that future strife May be prevented now. The princes France and

Burgundy,

5 express our darker purpose.] 1608, and first folio of 1623; Darker, for more secret; not for where we find it, indirect, oblique.

--and ris our first intent, WARBURTON.

which is as Shakespear wrote it : This word may admit a fur- who makes Lear declare his purther explication. We mall ex. pose with a dignity becoming press our darker purpose that is, his character: That the first reawe have already made known fon of his abdication was the in some measure our design of love of his people, that they parting the kingdom ; we will might be . protected by such as now discover what has not been were better able to discharge told before, the reasons by which the trust; and his natural affecwe shall regulate the partition. tion for his daughters, only the This interpretation will justify fecond.

WARBURTON. or palliate the exordial dialogue. Fas is the reading of the first

and 'ris our past intent,] folio, and I think the true readThis is an interpolation of Mr. ing. Lewis Theobald, for want of 7 Conftant will seems a confirknowing the meaning of the mation of fajt intent. eld reading in the quarto of

Great

B 3

Great rivals in our younger daughter's love,
Long in our court have made their am'rous sojourn,
And here are to be answir’d. Tell me, daughters,
Since now we will diveft us both of rule,
Int'rest of territory, cares of state,
Which of you, shall we say, doth love us most,
That we our largest bounty may extend,
Where nature doth with merit challenge. Gonerill,
Our eldest born, speak first.

Gon. Sir,
I love you more than words can wield the matter,
Dearer than eye-light, space and liberty ;
Beyond what can be valued, rich or rare ;
No less than life, with grace, health, beauty, honour;
As much as child e'er lov’d, or father found;
A love that makes breath poor, and speech unable,
& Beyond all manner of so much I love you,
Cor. What shall Cordelia e do ? love and be silent.

[Afide. Lear. Of all these Bounds, ey'n from this line to

this,
With shadowy forests and with champions rich’d,
With plenteous rivers and wide-skirted meads,
We make thee lady. To thine and Albany's issue
Be this perpetual.-What lays our second daughter?
Our dearest Regan, wife of Cornwall, speak.

Reg. I'm made of that self-metal as my sister,
And prize me at her worth, in my true heart.
I find, she names my very deed of love,
Only the comes too short; that I profess

& Beyond all manner, &c.] i.e. 9 So the quarto: the folio has beyond all expreffion.

Speak. WARBURTON. ! -that I profess] That seems Beyond all manner of so much-] to stand without relation, but Beyond all aflignable quantity is referred to find, the first conI love you beyond limits, and junction being inaccurately supcannot say it is so much, for how pressed. I find that she names any much foever I should name it deed, that I profejs, &c. would yet be more.

My

Myself an enemy to all other joys,
: Which the most precious square of sense poffeffes ;
And find, I am alone felicitate
In your dear Highness' love.
Cor. Then poor Cordelia !

[Aside. And yet not 10, since, I am sure, my love's 3 More pond'rous than my tongue.

Lear. To thee, and thine, hereditary ever,
Remain this ample third of our fair Kingdom ;
* No less in space, validity, and pleasure,
Than that conferr'd on Gonerill. Now our joy,
Although our lait, not least, to whose young love,
The vines of France, and milk of Burgundy,
Strive to be inc'ress’d; what say you, to draw
A third, more opulent than your lifters ? Speak.

Cor. Nothing, my Lord.
Lear. Nothing?
Cor. Nothing

4 Which thămost precious square 4 No less in Space, validity, ]

of jenje polites;] By the Validity, for worth, value ; not square of sente, we are,' here, for integrity, or good title. to underitand the four nobler

WARBURTON. fenfes, viz. the fight, bearing, taste, and smell . For a young reading is picked out of two

Now our joy,) Here the true lady could not, with decency, insinuate that the knew of

copies. Butler's quarto reads,

any pleasures which the fifth afford

But now our joy, ed. This is imagined and ex- Although the last, not least in pressed with great propriety and our dear love, delicacy. But the Oxford Edi- What can you say to win a 197, for jquare, reads yfirit.

third, &c.
WARBURTON.

The folio,
This is acute ; but perhaps
Square means only compasi, com-

Now our joy, prebenfion.

Although our last, and least; 3 More pond'rous than MY to whose young love,

tongue] We fhould read, The vines of France, and milk THEIR tongue, meaning her fift

of Burgundy, WARBURTON.

Strive to be intress'd. What I think the present reading can you joy. right.

Lear,

ers.

B 4

Lear. Nothing can come of nothing; speak again.

Cor. Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave
My heart into my mouth. I love your Majesty
According to my bond, no more nor less.
Lear. Flow, how, Cordelia ? mend your speech a

little,
Left you may mar your fortunes.

Cor. Good iny Lord,
You have begot me, bred me, lov’d me. I
Return thole duties back, as are right fit,
Obey you, love you, and most honour you.
Why have my sisters husbands, if they say,
They love you, all ? haply, when I shall wed,
That Lord, whose hand must take my plight, shall

carry
Half my love with him, half my care and duty.
Sure, I shall never marry

like

my sisters,
To love my father all.
Lear. But goes thy heart with this?
Cor. Ay, my good Lord.
Lear. So young, and so untender?
Cor. So young, my Lord, and true.

Lear. Let it be so, thy truth then be thy dower :
For by the facred radiance of the sun,
The mysteries of Hecate, and the night,
By all the operations of the orbs,
From whom we do exist, and cease to be,
Here I disclaim all iny paternal care,
Propinquity and property of blood,
And as a stranger to my heart and me
Hold thee, from this, for ever. The barb'rous Scyn

thian,
Or he that makes his generation messes
To gorge his appetite, shall to my bosom

6 To love my father all.-] first edition, without which the These words restored from the sense was not compleat. Pope.

Be

Be as well neighbour'd, pitied, and reliev'd,
As thou, my sometime daughter.

Kent. Good my Liege-

Lear. Peace, Kent !
Come not between the dragon and his wrath.
I lov'd her most, and thought to set my Rest
On her kind nurs’ry. Hence, avoid my sight!-

[To Cor.

So be my grave my peace, as here I give
Her father's heart from her;-Call France-Who stirs ?
Call Burgundy-Cornwall and Albany,
With my two daughters' dowers digest the third.
Let pride, which she calls plainness, marry her.
I do invest you jointly with my power,
Preheminence, and all the large effects
That troop with Majesty. Our felf by 'monthly course,
With reservation of an hundred knights,
By you to be sustain'd; shall our abode
Make with you by due turns ; ? only retain
The name and all th' addition to a King :
The sway, revenue, execution of the rest,
Beloved sons, be yours; which to confirm,

7

1

-only relain

the whole is, I will only retain The name, and all th' addition the name and all the ceremoni10 a King :

ous observances that belong to a The fway, revenue, execution, King; the <ljentials, as fway,

Beloved fons, be yours;] The revenue, administration of the old books read the lines thus,

laws, be yours. The fway, revenue, execution

WARBURTON. OF THE REST,

Execution of the refl.) I do not Beloved fons, be yours.

see any great difficulty in the This is evidently corrupt, and words, execution of :he rest, which the editors not knowing what to are in both the old copies. The make of of the resi-, left it execution of the reft is, I supoat. The true reading, without pose, all i he other bufiness. Dr. doubt, was,

Warburton's own explanation of Tbe fway, revenue, execution his amendment confutes it; if of TH' HEST,

beft be a regal command, they Beloved fons, bi yours.

were, by the grant of Lear, to Heft, is an old word for regal have rather the best than the excommand : so that the sense of ecution.