O, if men were to be fav'd by merit, what hole in hell were hot enough for him? This is the most omnipotent villain, that ever cried, Stand, to a

true man.

P. HEN. Good morrow, Ned.

POINS. Good morrow, fweet Hal.-What fays monfieur Remorfe? What fays fir John Sack-andSugar? Jack, how agrees the devil and thee about

2-fir John Sack-and-Sugar?] Hentzner, p. 88, edit. 1757, fpeaking of the manners of the English, fays, " in potum copiosè immittunt faccarum," they put a great deal of sugar in their drink. REED.

Much inquiry has been made about Falftaff's fack, and great furprise has been expreffed that he should have mixed fugar with it. As they are here mentioned for the firft time in this play, it may not be improper to obferve that it is probable that Falstaff's wine was Sherry, a Spanish wine, originally made at Xeres. He frequently himself calls it Sherris-fack. Nor will his mixing fugar with fack appear extraordinary, when it is known that it was a very common practice in our author's time to put fugar into all wines. "Clownes and vulgar men (fays Fynes Moryfon) only use large drinking of beere or ale, but gentlemen garrawfe only in wine, with which they mix fugar, which I never obferved in any other place or kingdom to be used for that purpose. And becaufe the tafte of the English is thus delighted with fweetness, the wines in taverns (for I fpeak not of merchantes' or gentlemen's cellars) are commonly mixed at the filling thereof, to make them pleasant." ITIN. 1617. P. III. p. 152. See alfo Mr. Tyrwhitt's Chaucer, Vol. IV. p. 308: "Among the orders of the royal household in 1604 is the following: [Mfs. Harl. 293, fol. 162.] And whereas in tymes paft, Spanish wines, called Sacke, were little or no whitt ufed in our courte, we now understanding that it is now used in common drink," &c. Sack was, I believe, often mulled in our author's time. See a note, poft, on the words, "If fack and fugar be a fin," &c. See alfo Blount's GLOSSOGRAPHY: "Mulled Sack, (Vinum mollitum) because softened and made mild by burning, and a mixture of fugar."

Since this note was written, I have found reason to believe that Falstaff's Sack was the dry Spanish wine which we call Mountain Malaga. A paffage in Via Recta ad vitam longam, by Thomas

thy foul, that thou foldeft him on Good-friday last, for a cup of Madeira, and a cold capon's leg?

P. HEN. Sir John ftands to his word, the devil fhall have his bargain; for he was never yet a breaker of proverbs, he will give his devil his due.

POINS. Then art thou damn'd for keeping thy word with the devil.

P. HEN. Elfe he had been damn'd for cozening the devil.

POINS. But, my lads, my lads, to-morrow morning, by four o'clock, early at Gadshill: There are

Venner, Dr. of Phyficke in Bathe, 4to. 1622, feems to ascertain this:

"Sacke is completely hot in the third degree, and of thin parts, and therefore it doth vehemently and quickly heat the body.Some affect to drink fack with fugar, and fome without, and upon no other grounds, as I thinke, but as it is beft pleafing to their palates. I will fpeake what I deeme thereof.-Sack, taken by itfelf is very hot and very penetrative; being taken with fugar, the heat is both fomewhat allayed, and the penetrative quality thereof

alfo retarded."

The author afterwards thus fpeaks of the wine which we now denominate Sack, and which was then called Canary: "Canariewine, which beareth the name of the islands from whence it is brought, is of fome termed a facke, with this adjunct, sweete; but yet very improperly, for it differeth not only from facke in sweetness and pleasantness of tafte, but also in colour and confiftence, for it is not fo white in colour as fack, nor fo thin in fubftance; wherefore it is more nutritive than fack, and lefs penetrative.-White wine, Rhenifh wine, &c.-do in fix or feaven moneths, or within, according to the fmallness of them, attaine unto the height of their goodness, especially the fmaller fort of them. But the stronger fort of wines, as fack, muskadell, malmfey, are beft when they are two or three years old.”

From hence, therefore, it is clear, that the wine ufually called fack in that age was thinner than canary, and was a ftrong light-coloured dry wine; vin fec; and that it was a Spanish wine is afcertained by the order quoted by Mr. Tyrwhitt, and by feveral ancient books. Cole in his Dict. 1679, renders fack by Vinum Hifpanicum; and Sherwood in his English and French Dict. 1650, by Vin d'Espagne.

MALONE.

pilgrims going to Canterbury with rich offerings, and traders riding to London with fat purses: I have visors for you all, you have horses for yourfelves; Gadshill lies to-night in Rochefter; I have bespoke fupper to-morrow night in Eaftcheap; we may do it as fecure as fleep: If you will go, I will ftuff your purfes full of crowns; if you will not, tarry at home, and be hang'd.

FAL. Hear me, Yedward; if I tarry at home, and go not, I'll hang you for going. POINS. You will, chops?

FAL. Hal, wilt thou make one?

P. HEN. Who, I rob? I a thief? not I, by my faith.

FAL.There's neither honefty, manhood, nor good fellowship in thee, nor thou cameft not of the blood royal, if thou dareft not stand for ten fhillings.'

P. HEN. Well, then, once in my days I'll be a mad-cap.

FAL. Why, that's well faid.

P. HEN. Well, come what will, I'll tarry at home.

FAL. By the Lord, I'll be a traitor then, when thou art king.

P. HEN. I care not.

POINS. Sir John, I pr'ythee, leave the prince

3 if thou dar'ft not ftand, &c.] The modern reading [cry fand] may perhaps be right; but I think it neceffary to remark, that all the old editions read:-if thou dar'ft not stand for ten fillings. JOHNSON.

Falstaff is quibbling on the word royal. The real or royal was of the value of ten fillings. Almoft the fame jeft occurs in a fubfequent fcene. The quibble, however, is loft, except the old reading be preferved. Cry, ftand, will not fupport it. STEEVENS.

and me alone; I will lay him down fuch reafons for this adventure, that he shall

go.

FAL. Well, may'st thou have the spirit of perfuafion, and he the ears of profiting, that what thou fpeakeft may move, and what he hears may be believed, that the true prince may (for recreation fake,) prove a falfe thief; for the poor abuses of the time want countenance. Farewell: You fhall find me in Eastcheap.

P. HEN. Farewell, thou latter spring!' Farewell All-hallown fummer! + [Exit FALSTAFF.

POINS. Now, my good fweet honey lord, ride with us to-morrow; I have a jeft to execute, that I cannot manage alone. Falstaff, Bardolph, Peto, and Gadshill,' fhall rob thofe men that we have

3-thou latter Spring!] Old copies-the latter. Corrected by Mr. Pope. MALONE.

4

+ - All-hallown fummer!] All-ballows, is All-hallown-tide, or All-faints' day, which is the firft of November. We have ftill a church in London, which is abfurdly ftyled St. All-ballows, as if a word which was formed to exprefs the community of faints, could be appropriated to any particular one of the number. In The Play of the Four P's, 1569, this mistake (which might have been a common one) is pleafantly expofed:

"Pard. Friends, here you fhall fee, even anone,

"Of All-ballows the bleffed jaw-bone,

"Kifs it hardly, with good devotion:" &c.

The characters in this fcene are ftriving who fhould produce the greateft falfehood, and very probably in their attempts to excel each other, have out-lied even the Romish Kalendar.

Shak fpeare's allufion is defigned to ridicule an old man with youthful paffions. So, in the fecond part of this play: "the Martlemas your mafter." STEEVENS.

5 Falstaff, Bardolph, Peto, and Gadshill,] In former editionsFalstaff, Harvey, Roffil, and Gadshill. Thus have we two perfons named, as characters in this play, that were never among the dramatis perfonæ. But let us fee who they were that committed this robbery. In the fecond Act we come to a fcene of the highway. Falstaff, wanting his horse, calls out on Hal, Poins, Bardolph,

already way-laid; yourself, and I, will not be there: and when they have the booty, if you and I do not rob them, cut this head from my fhoulders.

P. HEN. But how fhall we part with them in fetting forth?

POINS. Why, we will fet forth before or after them, and appoint them a place of meeting, wherein it is at our pleasure to fail; and then will they adventure upon the exploit themselves: which they fhall have no fooner achieved, but we'll fet upon them.

P. HEN. Ay, but, 'tis like, that they will know us, by our horfes, by our habits, and by every other appointment, to be ourselves.

POINS. Tut! our horses they fhall not fee, I'll tie them in the wood; our vifors we will change, after we leave them; and, firrah," I have cafes of buckram for the nonce,' to immask our noted outward garments.

and Peto. Prefently Gadhill joins them, with intelligence of travellers being at hand; upon which the Prince fays," You four fhall front 'em in a narrow lane, Ned Poins and I will walk lower." So that the four to be concerned, are Falstaff, Bardolph, Peto, and Gadfhill. Accordingly, the robbery is committed; and the Prince and Poins afterwards rob them four. In the Boar's-head tavern, the Prince rallies Peto and Bardolph for their running away, who confefs the charge. Is it not plain now that Bardolph and Peto were two of the four robbers? And who then can doubt, but Harvey and Roffill were the names of the actors? THEOBALD. 6-firrah,] Sirrah, in our author's time, as appears from this and many other paffages, was not a word of difrefpect.

MALONE. It is fcarcely used as a term of respect, when addressed by the King to Hotfpur, p. 399. STEEVENS.

7for the nonce,] That is, as I conceive, for the occafion. This phrafe, which was very frequently, though not always very precifely, ufed by our old writers, I fuppofe to have been originally a corruption of corrupt Latin. From pro-nunc, I fuppofe, came for