happy man!" (Johnson). The expression was proverbial. Cf. M. W. iii. 4. 68, T. of S. i. 1. 144, and 1 Hen. IV. ii. 2. 81. Dole was the term (as it still is in England) for a charitable allowance of provision to the poor. Cf. A. W. ii. 3. 76: "what dole of honour" (that is, share, portion); and 2 Hen. IV. i. 1. 169: "in the dole of blows" (that is, dealing or giving). 170. Childness. "Childishness," which is the word elsewhere used by S. Cf. Cor. v. 3. 157, etc.

171. Thick. Used by S. only here; for thicken, see Macb. p. 212, note on Light thickens. Cf. Macb. i. 5. 44: "make thick my blood." Squire. Here used with half-sportive tenderness. For its contemptuous use, cf. Much Ado, i. 3. 54, Oth. iv. 2. 145, etc.

172. Offic'd. “Having a place or function” (Schmidt). Cf. Oth. i. 3. 271: "My speculative and offic'd instruments" ("active" in the quartos). 174. How thou lovest us, etc. "Thus enjoined by himself, it could be only the cruel injustice of that most unjust passion, jealousy, that makes Leontes resent his wife's courtesy to Polixenes as a proof of her guilt" (Clarke).

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177. Apparent. That is, heir apparent; as in 3 Hen. VI. ii. 2. 64 : as apparent to the crown."

178. Shall's. Shall us; that is, shall we. Cf. Cor. iv. 6. 148: "Shall 's to the Capitol?" See also T. of A. iv. 3. 408, Cymb. iv. 2. 233, v. 5. 228, Per. iv. 5. 7, etc. Gr. 215.

W. remarks: "S. had the minute details of the old novel vividly in mind here: When Pandosto was busied with such urgent affaires that hee could not bee present with his friend Egistus, Bellaria would walke with him into the garden, where they two in privat and pleasant devises would passe away the time to both their contents.'

179. To your own bents, etc. Dispose of yourselves according to your

inclination.

181. How I give line. Cf. 2 Hen. IV. iv. 4. 39: "give him line and scope."

183. Neb. Beak, here=mouth. Steevens quotes Paynter, Palace of Pleasure, 1566: "the amorous wormes of love did bitterly gnawe and teare his heart wyth the nebs of their forked heads." Rowe changed it to "nib," the more common form of the word. Halliwell quotes Kennett's Glossary (MS. Lansd. 1033): “Neb, nose, Bor. et Kent, hold up your nebb, Sax. nebbe, nasus, nares; item nostrum,* the bill, beak, nib or nebbe of a bird; whence, by metaphor, the nib or nebbe of a pen; Island. nebbe, nasus;" Two Maids of Moreclacke, 1609: "Shal 's not busse, knight? shal 's not neb?" and MS. Bodl. 652: "He kisseth Benjamin, anon his neb he gan wipe."

185. Allowing. 'Approving" (Malone), or "conniving" (Schmidt). 186. Fork'd. Horned. Cf. Oth. iii. 3. 276: "this forked plague" (that is, cuckoldom). See also T. and C. i. 2. 178.

188. So... whose. Cf. 7. C. i. 2. 316:

For who so firm that cannot be seduc'd?" See also such... which in i. 1. 22 above, and such... that in 253 below. Gr. 278, 279.

* So in Halliwell; probably a misprint for "rostrum."-Ed.

190. There have been, etc. Cf. Oth. iv. 1. 63 fol.

195. Strike.

our ed. p. 177.

Cf. Ham. i. 1. 162: "no planets strike;" and see note in

196. Predominant. An astrological term. Cf. A. W. i. 1. 211: "When he [Mars] was predominant." See Macb. p. 203, note on Is 't night's predominance, etc. For on 's of us, see Gr. 182.

198. They. Omitted in the 1st folio, but supplied in the 2d.

202. This great sir. Cf. iv. 4. 350: "this ancient sir ;" T. N. iii. 4. 81 : "Some sir of note," etc.

204. Came home.

A nautical phrase would not hold.

206. More material. Either the more important the more you besought him (Clarke), or more urgent than your petitions.

207. They're here with me, etc. "They go so far with respect to me as to whisper," etc. (Schmidt); or, perhaps, "they are aware of my condition (V.). For round murmur, whisper, cf. K. John, ii. 1. 566: "rounded in the ear ;" and see Hen. VIII. p. 168, foot-note.

208. So-forth. Steevens says: "At the corner of Fleet Market, I lately heard one woman, describing another, say 'Everybody knows that her husband is a so- forth.' As she spoke the last word, her fingers expressed the emblem of cuckoldom."

209. Gust. Perceive; literally, taste. Cf. the noun in Sonn. 114. II and T. N. i. 3. 33.

212. So it is. We should say, as it is.

214. Thy conceit is soaking, etc. Thy mind is absorbent, and takes in more than ordinary blockheads do. Clarke sees a metaphorical allusion to the dyeing of hats, indicated by the word blocks, which was used for hats in that day, and which S. punningly uses for heads also: "Was this black aspect of the matter taken by any pate but thine? For thy conception of it is steeped in the dye, and will draw in more than the ordinary run of hat-heads." For block the wood on which hats were formed, see Much Ado, i. 1. 77. In Lear, iv. 6. 187 it is the fashion or form of a hat. 216. Severals. Individuals. See Hen. V. p. 146.

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217. Lower messes. Persons of inferior rank, those who sat at the lower end of the table. At a great man's table, the guests were not only seated according to their rank or dignity, but were divided into two grades by the great salt-cellar in the middle of the board. Steevens cites in illustration of this Dekker, Hon. Wh.: “Plague him; set him beneath the salt, and let him not touch a bit till every one has had his full cut ;" and B. and F., Woman Hater, i. 2: Uncut-up pies at the nether end, filled with moss and stones, partly to make a shew with, and partly to keep the lower mess from eating." "In the Northumberland Household Booke we find that the clerks of the kitchen are to be with the cooks at the 'striking out of the messes;' and in the same curious picture of ancient manners there are the most minute directions for serving delicacies to my lord's own mess, but bacon and other pièces de résistance to the Lord Chamberlain's and Steward's messes" (K.). Mess also sometimes meant a set of four; "as at great dinners the company was usually arranged into fours" (Nares). Cf. L. L. L. iv. 3. 207: "you three fools lacked one fool to make up the mess," etc.

227. Chamber-counsels. "Private thoughts or cares" (Schmidt). The folio has "Chamber-Councels " Counsel and council are often confounded in the early eds.

228. Cleans'd my bosom. Cf. Mach. v. 3. 44: "Cleanse the stuff'd bosom," etc.

232. To bide upon't. To dwell upon it, to repeat it.

234. Hoxes. Houghs, or hamstrings; used by S. only here. Steevens quotes Knolles, Hist. of the Turks: 'and with his sword hoxed his

horse."

236. Grafted in my serious trust. Thoroughly trusted by me.

238. Home. "In good earnest " (Schmidt); or, perhaps, rather=completely, to the end. Cf. Temp. v. 1. 71: "I will pay thy graces home;" Macb. i. 3. 120: "trusted home," etc.

240. Fearful. Full of fear; referring to the coward above. See J. C. p. 175, note on With fearful bravery.

245. Wilful-negligent. For compound adjectives, see Gr. 2. 246. Industriously. Studiously, deliberately (Schmidt); used by S. only

here.

251. Against the non-performance. Heath conjectures "now-performance," and explains the passage thus: "At the execution whereof such circumstances discovered themselves as made it prudent to suspend all further proceeding in it." Malone remarks that this is "a good interpretation of the original text," which he has no doubt is what S. wrote. He considers it, and we think rightly, one of those peculiar "double negatives" of which Schmidt gives many examples in his Appendix, p. 1420. See A. Y. L. p. 156, note on No more do yours. Clarke paraphrases the passage thus: "Of which the execution, when once effected, proclaimed its non-performance to have been wrong."

253. Allow'd. To be allowed, allowable. For such... that, see on 188 above.

262. Think. Theo. added "it," and Hanmer gave "think 't;" but, as Malone notes, the clause which follows-My wife, etc.—is the object of think as well as of thought.

266. Hobby-horse. The folios have "holy-horse;" corrected by Rowe. 269. 'Shrew. Beshrew. Cf. ii. 2. 30 below, and see M. N. D. p. 152. 271. Which to reiterate, etc. To repeat which would be a sin as great as that of which you accuse her, if the charge were true.

273. Noses. Omitted in Mrs. Clarke's Concordance, under nose. 275. Note. Mark, sign. Cf. 2 above.

278. Noon. The later folios have "the noon." Abbott (Gr. 484) makes the word a dissyllable. In the Var. of 1821, blind is put at the end of this line; and Steevens says that theirs, theirs are dissyllables.

279. The pin and web. An early phase of cataract in the eye. Cf. Lear, iii. 4. 122: "he gives the web and the pin, squints the eye," etc. Steevens, in a note on Lear, quotes Every Woman in her Humour, 1609: "a pin and web argent, in hair du roy." Florio (as quoted by V.) defines cataratta as "a dimness of sight, occasioned by humours hardened in the eyes, called a cataract, or a pin and a web."

290. Hovering. Wavering, irresolute. Cf. R. of L. 1297: "First hovering o'er the paper with her quill."

294. Glass. Hour-glass. Cf. Temp. i. 2. 240: “At least two glasses;" Id. v. 1. 223: "but three glasses since," etc. See also iv. I. 16 below.

295. Her medal. The folios have "her Medull" (" Medul" in 4th folio). Theo. gave" his medal," and the Coll. MS. has "a medal." Like her medal like a medal of her. Steevens remarks that Sir Christopher Hatton is represented with a medal of Queen Elizabeth appended to his chain. Cf. Hen. VIII. ii. 2. 32 :

"a loss of her

That, like a jewel, has hung twenty years
About his neck, yet never lost her lustre."

For jewel, see T. N. p. 154, and cf. v. 2. 32 below.

301. Meaner form. Lower seat, or position. See R. and J. p. 172. Bench'd seated upon a bench, placed on a higher seat. The verb is used intransitively (to sit on a seat of justice, to be judge) in Lear, iii. 6. 40 : "Bench by his side." Rear'd to worship raised to honour.

304. Galled. The folios have "gall'd," and the later ones read "thou mightst." Steevens quotes Chapman's Odyssey, x. :

"With a festival

She'll first receive thee; but will spice thy bread
With flowery poisons;"

and Id. xviii.: "spice their pleasure's cup."
305. A lasting wink. Cf. Temp. ii. 1. 285:

"Whiles you, doing this,

To the perpetual wink for aye might put

This ancient morsel, this Sir Prudence," etc.

See also Ham. ii. 2. 137: “Or given my heart a winking, mute and dumb."

307. Rash. Quick-acting. Cf. 1 Hen. IV. iii, 2. 61:

2 Hen. IV. iv. 4. 48: 309. Maliciously.

son).

"rash bavin wits,

Soon kindled and soon burnt;"

"rash gunpowder," etc.

"Malignantly, with effects openly hurtful" (John

310. This crack. Cf. Oth. ii. 3. 330: "this crack of your love shall grow stronger than it was before.' Dread revered, held in awe.

311. Sovereignly. For the transposition of the adverb, see Gr. 421. 312. I have lov'd thee. Theo. transferred these words to the next speech, which he explained thus: "I have tendered thee well, Camillo, but I here cancel all former respect at once: if thou any longer make a question of my wife's disloyalty, go from my presence, and perdition overtake thee for thy stubbornness!" Steevens retains the old reading, and says: "Camillo is about to tell Leontes how much he had loved him. The impatience of the king interrupts him by saying, 'Make that thy question,' that is, make the love of which you boast the subject of your future conversation, and go to the grave with it." We prefer Malone's interpretation: “Make that (that is, Hermione's disloyalty, which is so

clear a point) a subject of debate or discussion, and go rot! Dost thou think I am such a fool as to torment myself, and to bring disgrace on me and my children, without sufficient grounds?"

314. Appoint myself, etc. We are inclined to agree with Schmidt that this means "to dress myself," etc. Cf. "drest in an opinion" (M. of V. i. I. 91), "attired in wonder" (Much Ado, iv. I. 146), "wrapped in dismal thinkings" (A. W. v. 3. 128), etc. Clarke thinks appoint may mean “ point out, mark out, stigmatize."

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317. Is goads, thorns, etc. Abbott (Gr. 484, 509) is doubtful whether this is a line "of four accents" or whether goads and thorns are dissylla

bles.

320. Ripe. Mature, urgent, pressing; as in M. of V. i. 3. 64: "the ripe wants of my friend," etc.

321. Blench. "Fly off, be inconstant" (Schmidt). Cf. M. for M. iv. 5.5: "Though sometimes you do blench from this to that, As cause doth minister;"

and T. and C. ii. 2. 68:

"there can be no evasion

To blench from this, and to stand firm by honour."

322. Fetch off. Take off, make away with. Cf. 2 Hen. IV. iii. 2. 324: "I will fetch off these justices" (that is, as Schmidt explains it, “make a prey of them").

325. Sealing the injury of tongues. Putting a stop to the mischief of talk or scandal.

333. I am his cup-bearer. In Greene's tale Pandosto contriving "how he might best put away Egistus without suspition of treacherous murder, hee concluded at last to poyson him ; . . . and the better to bring the matter to passe he called unto him his [Egistus's] cupbearer." Franion, the cup-bearer, endeavours to dissuade Pandosto from his purpose, but, finding it in vain, "consented as soon as opportunity would give him leave to dispatch Egistus" (W.).

337. Thou split'st thine own. Thou dost rive thine own; that is, it will be the death of you.

345. If I could find, etc.

Blackstone believed this to be a reference to the death of Mary Queen of Scots; but, as Douce remarks, the perpetrator of that murder did flourish many years afterwards. He adds: "May it not rather be designed as a compliment to King James on his escape from the Gowrie conspiracy, an event often brought to the people's recollection during his reign, from the day on which it happened being made a day of thanksgiving?"

Break-neck. Halliwell quotes An Account of the Christian Prince, 1607: "the very breaknecke of our ensueinge sports," etc.

357. As he had. As if he had. See Gr. 107.

360. Wafting his eyes, etc. Turning his eyes in the opposite direction. For the transitive use of falling (=letting fall), see 7. C. p. 169.

Mason remarks here: "This is a stroke of nature worthy of Shakespeare. Leontes had but a moment before assured Camillo that he would seem friendly to Polixenes, according to his advice; but on meeting him,