G. 254. W.235.-On fitting fortune. G. 257. W. 238.-Your humble subject. G. 257. W. 238.-I have wrought, To crown thy temples, this provincial garland. "I am not certain (what a pity!) whether the garland was composed of provincial or provencial roses, which are mentioned in Hamlet: provencial roses on my razed shoes'!!! It is certainly a violent anachronism to introduce Provençal roses in a tale of Sparta, which, however, the common usage of the appellation for the rosa centifolia would excuse, &c." And this unutterable stupidity, of which I can copy no more, has been graciously accepted by the public! They merit it all. The garland, however, was of bay. It was the reward of the heroic times for conquering a province; and was now appropriately bestowed on Ithocles for adding the province of Messene to Laconia. G. 258. W.239.-She is in all our own daughter. How musical! Read: She is in all our daughter. G. 259. IV. 239.-I use not these fit slights. i. e. "arts, subtle practices." Here, as every where else, Mr. Weber runs to his index; and here, as every where else, he blunders on the wrong example. By slights, Ithocles means undervaluings; and by fit, adapted to (what he modestly terms) his own want of merit. G. 260. W.241.-You wish'd your country peace. Read: You wish'd your country's peace. G. 260. W.241. and altogether. This does not give the poet's meaning. Read as he wrote-and all together. G. 265. W.245. for to speak the truth. This foolish insertion spoils the metre. Read: For to speak truth. G.268. W.247.-These apish boys, when they but task the grammates, The principles of theory. Read: These apish boys, when they but taste the gram mates, And principles of theory. G. 271. W.250.-Suddenly, “i. e. immediately." Ringrazio ! G. 272. W.250.-Cull, passim. Read: coll. G. 272. W. 251. Struck on their foreheads. G. 272. W.251.-No woman but can fall, and doth, or would. "i. e. No woman, if she but can fall, doth fall, or if she cannot, fain would fall." And this I take to be a clear account of the matter! Bassanes says, Every woman is liable to fall; and either actually does fall, or would, if an opportunity offered. It is against the last chance that he purposes to guard, by closing his doors and windows. G.273. W.251. All his they say the king has mow'd This is almost too absurd for Mr. Weber. Is there a child in the kingdom who does not know that to mew, is to moult, to shed the feathers? &c. And this precious correction (mowed) is, with the most undoubting simplicity, advanced into the text! G. 276. W.254.-I must attend Whether you please. G.277. IV. 255. How they flatter Wagtails and jays together! Could nothing excite Mr. Weber's suspicion? G.277. IV. 255.-Pleasant! how? The speaker is in no mood for pleasantry: he speaks in the impatience of anger to Phulas. Read: Peasant, how? G. 283. W.259.—Demur, “ i. e. delay." No doubt! G. 283. W.260.-Marriage joys are-the sinews of concord. "A metaphor taken from the sinews of a musical instrument." Excellent, The matter is not much; and yet it should be noticed, for it spoils the verse. G.282. W.263. Read: such alacrity as nature And custom did delight in. as nature And custom took delight in. Why was this silly change? G. 286. W.263.-Exit Orgilus. Orgilus is the chief speaker in the scene! As sweetly scented as the incense smoking "Those," Mr. Weber says, "is necessary to sense and metre, and is therefore introduced without apology." Had the assertion been true, Mr. Weber would have stumbled on a very good apology without knowing it. What sense the insertion of those found or left in the verse, is known only to himself:-but this is all he says on this exquisite passage-broken and confused indeed, far beyond his power of restitution; but which (as appears from his next note) he neither comprehended, nor felt in the slightest degree. G. 291. W. 267.-I tear my veil. Read: I will tear my veil. G. 293. W.268.-Pro. In vain we labour, &c. Here Mr. Weber has absurdly taken a speech from Penthea, to whom it characteristically belongs, and given it to Prophilus. G. 294. W.269.-Hath shock'd that shadow off. Read: Hath shook that shadow off. G. 295. W. 270.-For basis, r. bases; and, for treasons or adulteries, r. treasons and adulteries. G. 295. W.270.-Intrenching on just laws. "This is a singular use of this verb, and it is put here for trenching upon just laws." Good! G. 296. W.271.-But let the gods be moderators still! “Moderators, a metaphor, taken from the office of moderators in public corporations." Better! G. 296. W.271.-The prince of Argos Is entertained? "i.e. expected. This use of the verb is not very common, but the deduction of the meaning from the more common sense of it is sufficiently plain." Best of all! Mr. Weber had but to read the very next line, to see that the prince (so far from being expected) was al ready arrived; had been entertained, in the usual sense of the word, and made his demand of the princess's hand. It should be observed, that the last three “ illustrative notes" closely follow one another on the same page. Surely no blind mole ever blundered into day so unluckily. G.299. W.274.-The handmaid to the wages, The untroubled [but] of country toil, drinks streams. "The handmaid to the wages, is a singular expression,-but the author is in many instances not less quaint in similar phrases. The old copy reads "the untroubled of country toil," which is in direct opposition to the "handmaid to the wages," who is certainly not untroubled of country toil.—The least violent alteration which suggested itself was the introduction of but, and this not only affords sense, but greatly assists the metre." After all this storm in a puddle, (and I have given but a part of it,) nothing is needed but a simple transposition. Read: The handmaid to the wages Of country toil, drinks the untroubled streams Here is no want of either sense or metre; and Mr. Weber's but may be sent about its business. G. 301. IV. 276.-Calantha 'tis: the princess, the king's daughter, Sole heir of Sparta. "I have ventured," Mr. Weber says, "to make an alteration here. The old copy reads, Calantha is the princess, &c. which is neither unknown to Penthea, nor to the reader." Pity that such sagacity should be thrown away! Penthea had pressed her brother for the name of his mistress, which, |