2. GENT. But 1.GENT. His daughter, and cerning it without animofity or fhame. what's the matter? the heir of his Of the two emendations This paffage is fo difficult, that commentators may differ conpropofed, Sir Thomas Hanmer's is the more licentious; but he makes the fenfe clear, and leaves the reader an eafy paffage. Dr. Warburton has corrected with more caution, but lefs improvement: his reafoning upon his own reading is fo obfcure and perplexed, that I fufpect fome injury of the prefs.-I am now to tell my opinion, which is, that the lines ftand as they were originally written, and that a paraphrafe, fuch as the licentious and abrupt expreffions of our author too frequently require, will make emendation unneceffary. We do not meet a man but frowns; our bloodsOur countenances, which, in popular fpeech, are faid to be regulated by the temper of the blood,-zo more obey the laws of heaven, which direct us to appear what we really are, than our courtiers: that is, than the bloods of our courtiers; but our bloods, like theirs,-ftill feem, as doth the king's. JOHNSON. In The Yorkshire Tragedy, 1608, which has been attributed to Shakspeare, blood appears to be used for inclination: For 'tis our blood to love what we are forbidden.” Again, in King Lear, A&t IV. fc. ii: -Were it my fitnefs "To let thefe hands obey my blood." In King Henry VIII. A& III. fc. iv. is the fame thought: 66 fubject to your countenance, glad, or forry, "As I faw it inclin'd." STEEVENS. I would propofe to make this paffage clear by a very flight alteration, only leaving out the last letter: You do not meet a man but frowns: our bloods No more obey the heavens, than our courtiers That is, Still look as the king does; or, as he expreffes it a little dif ferently 66 afterwards: wear their faces to the bent "Of the king's look." TYRWHITT. genitive cafe annexed to the word courtiers, which appears to be a The only error that I can find in this paffage is, the mark of the modern innovation, and ought to be corrected. The meaning of no more obey the heavens than our He purpos'd to his wife's fole fon, (a widow, Is outward forrow; though, I think, the king 2. GENT. None but the king? 1. GENT. He, that hath loft her, too: fo is the queen, That most defir'd the match: But not a courtier, courtiers do; they ftill feem as the king's does." The obscurity arifes from the omiffion of the pronoun they, by a common poetical licence. M. MASON. Blood is fo frequently used by Shakspeare for natural difpofition, that there can be no doubt concerning the meaning here. So, in All's well that ends well: "Now his important blood will nought deny See alfo Timon of Athens, Vol. XI. p. 578, n. 5. I have followed the regulation of the old copy, in feparating the word courtiers from what follows, by placing a femicolon after it. "Still feem"-for "they ftill feem," or "our bloods still feem,' is common in Shakspeare. The mark of the genitive case, which has been affixed in the late editions to the word courtiers, does not appear to me neceffary, as the poet might intend to fay" than our courtiers obey the heavens:" though, it must be owned, the modern regulation derives fome fupport from what follows: but not a courtier, Although they wear their faces to the bent Of the king's looks, " We have again, in Antony and Cleopatra, a fentiment fimilar to that before us: Her husband banish'd; she imprison'd; all Is outward forrow; &c.] I would reform the metre as follows: All's outward forrow; &c. Wed is used for wedded, in The Comedy of Errors : "In Syracufa was I born, and wed,.' STEEVENS. Although they wear their faces to the bent 2. GENT. And why fo? 2. GENT. You speak him far.* 1. GENT. I do extend him, fir, within himself;" Crush him' together, rather than unfold His measure duly. 4 You Speak him far.] i. e. you praise him extenfively. STEEVENS. You are lavish in your encomiums on him: : your elogium has a wide compafs. MALONE. JOHNSON. s I do extend him, fir, within himself] I extend him within himfelf: my praise, however extenfive, is within his merit. My elogium, however extended it may feem, is fhort of his real excellence: it is rather abbreviated than expanded.-We have again the fame expreffion in a fubfequent fcene: "The approbation of this lamentable divorce, are wonderfully to extend The report of her is thofe that weep Perhaps this paffage may be fomewhat illuftrated by the following lines in Troilus and Creffida, Act III. fc. iii: no man is the lord of any thing, "Crowd us and crush us in this monstrous form." STEEVERS. 2. GENT. What's his name, and birth? 1. GENT. I cannot delve him to the root: His father Was call'd Sicilius, who did join his honour, And had, befides this gentleman in question, father (Then old and fond of iffue,) took fuch forrow, 8 7-Tenantius,] was the father of Cymbeline, and nephew of Caffibelan, being the younger fon of his elder brother Lud, king of the fouthern part of Britain; on whofe death Caffibelan was admitted king. Caffibelan repulfed the Romans on their first attack, but being vanquished by Julius Cæfar on his fecond invafion of Britain, he agreed to pay an annual tribute to Rome. After his death, Tenantius, Lud's younger fon, (his elder brother Androgeus having fled to Rome) was established on the throne, of which they had been unjustly deprived by their uncle. According to fome authorities, Tenantius quietly payed the tribute ftipulated by Caffibelan; according to others, he refufed to pay it, and warred with the Romans. Shakspeare fuppofes the latter to be the truth. Holinfhed, who furnished our poet with these facts, furnished him alfo with the name of Sicilius, who was admitted king of Britain, A. M. 3659. The name of Leonatus he found in Sidney's Arcadia. Leonatus is there the legitimate fon of the blind king of Paphlagonia, on whose story the epifode of Glofter, Edgar, and Edmund, is formed in King Lear. See Arcadia, p. 69, edit. 1593. MALONE. Shakspeare, having already introduced Leonato among the characters in Much Ado about Nothing, had not far to go for Leonatus. STEEVENS. 6 AMBELINE. 2. GENT. But what's the matter? GENT. His daughter, and the heir of his This paffage is fo difficult, that commentators may differ concerning it without animofity or fhame. Of the two emendations propofed, Sir Thomas Hanmer's is the more licentious; but he makes the fenfe clear, and leaves the reader an easy paffage. Dr. Warburton has corrected with more caution, but lefs improvement: his reafoning upon his own reading is fo obfcure and perplexed, that I fufpect fome injury of the prefs.-I am now to tell my opinion, which is, that the lines ftand as they were originally written, and that a paraphrase, such as the licentious and abrupt expreffions of our author too frequently require, will make emendation unneceffary. We do not meet a man but frowns; our bloodsour countenances, which, in popular fpeech, are faid to be regulated by the temper of the blood,-no more obey the laws of heaven, -which direct us to appear what we really are,-than our courtiers: —that is, than the bloods of our courtiers; but our bloods, like theirs,-ftill feem, as doth the king's. JOHNSON. In The Yorkshire Tragedy, 1608, which has been attributed to Shakspeare, blood appears to be ufed for inclination: "For 'tis our blood to love what we are forbidden." Again, in King Lear, A&t IV. fc. ii: Were it my fitnefs "To let these hands obey my blood." In King Henry VIII. A& III. fc. iv. is the fame thought: fubject to your countenance, glad, or forry, "As I faw it inclin'd." STEEVENS. I would propofe to make this paffage clear by a very flight alteration, only leaving out the last letter: You do not meet a man but frowns: our bloods No more obey the heavens, than our courtiers That is, Still look as the king does; or, as he expresses it a little dif- 66 wear their faces to the bent "Of the king's look." TYRWHITT. The only error that I can find in this paffage is, the mark of the genitive cafe annexed to the word courtiers, which appears to be a modern innovation, and ought to be corrected. The meaning of it is this:" Our difpofitions no more obey the heavens than our |