Duke Sen. What would you have? Your gentleness fhall force, More than your force move us to gentleness. Orla. I almoft die for food, and let me have it. Duke Sen. Sit down and feed, and welcome to our table. Orla. Speak you fo gently? pardon me, I pray you; I thought, that all things had been favage here; Of stern commandment. But whate'er you are, Under the fhade of melancholy boughs, < 5 Lose and neglect the creeping hours of time; If ever you have look'd on better days; If ever been where bells have knoll'd to church; <If ever fate at any good man's feast; • If ever from your eyelids wip'd a tear, And know what 'tis to pity, and be pitied;" Let gentleness my ftrong enforcement be, In the which hope I blush, and hide my fword. And have with holy bell been knoll'd to church; Orla. Then but forbear your food a little while, 5 Lofe and neglect the creeping hours of time ;] Opprefs'd with two weak evils, age and hunger, Duke Sen. Go find him out, And we will nothing wafte till you return. Orla. I thank ye; and be blefs'd for your good comfort! [Exit, Duke Sen. Thou feeft, we are not all alone unhappy; This wide and univerfal Theatre Prefents more woful pageants, than the scene Faq. All the world's a Stage, And all the men and women meerly Players; And then, the whining fchool-boy with his fatchel, Even in the cannon's mouth. And then, the juftice And fo he plays his part. 7 The fixth age fhifts • With 6 Full of wife faws and modern inftances,] It is remarkable that Shakespear ufes modern in the double fenfe that the Greeks ufed nails, both for recens and abfurdus. 7 The fixth age shifts Into the lean and flipper'd pantaloon,] beauty than appears at firit fight in this image. There is a greater . With fpectacles on nofe, and pouch on fide; SCE NE X. Enter Orlando, with Adam. Duke Sen. Welcome: fet down your venerable burden, And let him feed. Orla. I thank you moft for him. Adam. So had you need, I fcarce can fpeak to thank you for myself. you, As yet to question you about your fortunes. Give us fome mufick; and, good cousin, fing. SONG. Blow, blow, thou winter wind, Thou art not fo unkind As man's ingratitude; Thy tooth is not fo keen, Altho thy breath be rude. Heigh paring human life to a fage play, of feven acts, (which was no unufual divifion before our author's time.) The fixth he calls the lean and flipper'd pantaloon, alluding to that general character in the Italian comedy, called Il Pantalóne; who is a thin emaciated old man in flippers; and well defigned, in that epithet, because Pantalóne is the only character that acts in flippers. 8 Because thou art not SEEN,] This fong is defigned to fuit the Duke's exiled condition, who had been ruined by ungrateful flatterers. Heigh bo! fing, beigh bo! unto the green holly; This life is most jolly. Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky, Tho' thou the waters warp, As friend remembred not. Duke Sen. If that you were the good Sir Rowland's Son, As you have whisper'd faithfully you were, flatterers. Now the winter wind, the fong fays, is to be preferr'd to man's ingratitude. But why? Because it is not SEEN. But this was not only an aggravation of the injury, as it was done in fecret, not seen, but was the very circumftance that made the keennefs of the ingratitude of his faithlefs courtiers. Without doubt, Shakespear wrote the line thus, Becaufe thou art not SHEEN, i. e. fmiling, fhining, like an ungrateful court-servant, who flatters while he wounds, which was a very good reason for giving the winter wind the preference. So in the Midfummer's Night's Dream, Spangled far light SHEEN, and feveral other places. Chaucer ufes it in this sense, Your blisful fufter Lucina the SHENE. And Fairfax, The facred Angel took his Target SHENE, And by the Chriftian Champion flood unfeen. The Oxford editor, who had this emendation communicated to him, takes occafion from thence to alter the whole line thus, Thou caufeft not that teen. But, in his rage of correction, he forgot to leave the reason, which is now wanting, Why the winter wind was to be preferred to man's ingratitude. And And as mine eye doth his effigies witness, [Exeunt. ACT III. SCENE I. The PALACE. Enter Duke, Lords, and Oliver. DUKE. TOT fee him fince? Sir, Sir, that cannot be; NR But were I not the better part made mercy, I should not feek an abfent argument Of my revenge, thou prefent: but look to it Seek him with candle: bring him dead or living, Thy lands and all things that thou doft call thine, Oli. Oh, that your Highness knew my heart in this: I never lov'd my brother in my life. Duke. More villain thou. Well, push him out of doors; And let my officers of fuch a nature Make an Extent upon his house and lands: Do this expediently, and turn him going. [Exeunt. SCENE |