With burdens of the dead ;-some that were hang'd,' | Let it no more bring out ingrateful man! No matter:-wear them, betray with thom: whore still; Paint till a horse may mire upon your face: Phr. & Timan. Well, more gold;-What then?Believe't, that we'll do any thing for gold. Tim. Consumptions sow 3 In hollow bones of man; strike their sharp shins, And let the unscarr'd braggarts of the war Phr. & Timan. More counsel with more money, bounteous Timon. Tim. More whore, more mischief first; I have given you earnest. Alcib. Strike up the drum, towards Athens. Farewell, Timon; If I thrive well, I'll visit thee again. Tim. Yes, thou spok'st well of me. We but offend him. [Drum beats. Exeunt ALCIBIADES, PHRYNIA, and TIMANDRA. Tim. That nature, being sick of man's unkindness, Should yet be hungry!-Common mother, thou, [Digging. Whose womb unmeasurable, and infinite breast," Teems, and feeds all; whose self-same mettle, Whereof thy proud child, arrogant man, is puff'd, Engenders the black toad, and adder blue, The gilded newt, and eyeless venom'd worm," With all the abhorred births below crisp heaven, Whereon Hyperion's quickening fire doth shine; Yield him, who all thy human sons doth hate, From forth thy plenteous bosom, one poor root! Ensear thy fertile and conceptious womb," The fashion of periwigs for women, which Stowe informs us' were brought into England about the time of the massacre of Paris,' seems to have been a fertile source of satire. Stubbes, in his Anatomy of Abuses, says that it was dangerous for any child to wander, as nothing was more common than for women to entice such as had fine locks into private places, and there to cut them off. 2 Quillets are subtleties, nice and frivolous distinctions. See Hamlet, Act v. Sc. 1. Το Go great with tigers, dragons, wolves, and bears; Enter APEMANTUS. More man? Plague! plague! Apem. I was directed hither: Men report, Thou dost affect my manners, and dost use them. Tim. "Tis, then, because thou dost not keep a dog Whom I would imitate. Consumption catch thee! Apem. This is in thee a nature but affected; A poor unmanly melancholy, sprung From change of fortune. Why this spade? this place? This slavelike habit? and these looks of care? Thy flatterers yet wear silk, drink wine, lie soft; thyself; A madman so long, now a fool: What, think'st That the bleak air, thy boisterous chamberlain, Will put thy shirt on warm? Will these moss'd trees, That have outliv'd the eagle, 14 page thy heels, Candied with ice, candle thy morning taste, Of wreakful heaven; whose bare unhoused trunks, 8 Perhaps Shakspeare meant curled (which was synonymous with crisp) from the appearance of the clouds in the Tempest, Ariel talks of sitting on the curl'a clouds.' Chaucer, in his House of Fame, says :'Her heare that was oundie and crips.' i. e. wavy and curled. Again, in the Philosopher's Satires, by Robert Anton - Her face as beauteous as the crisped morn.' 9 So in King Lear ; Dry up in her the organs of increase.' 10 Thus Milton, b. i. 1. 564 : Through the pure marble air.' 3 The old copy reads 'hoar the flamen,' which Steevens suggests may mean, give him the hoary leprosy. I have not scrupled to insert Upton's reading of hoarse into the text, because I think the whole construction of Again in Othello :the speech shows that is the word the poet wrote. afflict him with leprosy would not prevent his scolding, to deprive him of his voice by hoarseness might. 4 Toforesee his particular' is to provide for hisprivate advantage, for which he leaves the right scent of public good.' To grave is to bury. The word is now obsolete, but was familiar to our old writers. Thus Chapman in his version of the fifteenth Iliad : the throtes of dogs shall grave His manless limbs.' 6 This image (as Warburton ingeniously supposes) would almost make one imagine that Shakspeare was acquainted with some personifications of nature similar to the ancient statues of Diana Ephesia Multimammia. 7 The serpent which we, from the smallness of the eye, call the blind-worm, and the Latins cæcilia. So in Macbeth : "Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting.' Now by yon marble heaven.' 11 i. e. their diseased perfumed mistresses. Othello: Thus ir. "Tis such another fit chew; marry, a perfum'd one.' 12 Cunning of a carper is the fastidiousness of a critic. Shame not these words, says Apemantus, by coming here to find fault. Carping momuses was a general term for ill-natured critics. Beatrice's sarcastic raillery is thus designated by Ursula in Much Ado About Nothing :- "Why sure such carping is not commendable.' 13 To crook the pregnant hinges of the knee.' Hamlet. At duty, more than I could frame employment;" They never flatter'd thee: What hast thou given? Art thou proud yet? 1 To have wishes crowned is to have them completed, to be content. The highest fortunes, if contentless, have a wretched being, worse than that of the most abject fortune accompanied by content. Apem. Where would'st thou send it? Apem. The middle of humanity thou never knewest, but the extremity of both ends: When thou wast in thy gilt, and thy perfume, they mocked thee for too much curiosity; in thy rags thou knowest none, but art despised for the contrary. There's a medlar for thee, eat it. Tim. On what I hate, I feed not. Tim. Ay, though it look like thee. Apem. An thou hadst hated meddlers sooner, thou should'st have loved thyself better pow. What man didst thou ever know unthrift, that was beloved after his means? Tim. Who, without those means thou talkest of, didst thou ever know beloved? Apem. Myself. Tim. I understand thee; thou hadst some means to keep a dog. Apem. What things in the world canst thou nearest compare to thy flatterers? Tim. Women nearest; but men, men are the things themselves. What would'st thou do with the world, Apemantus, if it lay in thy power? Apem. Give it the beasts, to be rid of the men. 4 The old copy reads The passive drugges of it.' -Reason and respect 6 i. e. more than I could frame employment for. 7 Whose flatt'ring leaves that shadow'd us in our Massinger's Maid of Honour. 2 By his breath means by his voice, i. e. suffrage. 3 i. e. from infancy, from the first swathe hand with which a new-born infant is enveloped. There is in this speech a sullen haughtiness and malignant dignity, suitable at once to the lord and the man-hater. The impatience with which he bears to have his luxury reproached by one that never had luxury within his reach, is natural and graceful.' Johnson. Ó si sic omnia. In the conception and expression of this note (says Mr. Pye) we trace the mind and the pen of the author; a collection of such notes by Johnson would have been indeed a commentary worthy the critic and the poet. Johnson has adduced a passage somewhat resembling this from a letter written by the unfortunate favourite of Elizabeth, the Earl of Essex, just before his execution. I had none but divines to call upon me, to whom I said, if my ambition could have entered into their narrow hearts, they would not have been so humble; or if my I have heard Mr. Burke commend the subtlety of disdelights had been once tasted by them, they would not crimination with which Shakspeare distinguishes the have been so precise. The rest of this admirable let-present character of Timon from that of Apemantus, ter is, as Johnson justly observes, too serious and so-whom, to vulgar eyes, he would seem to resemble lemn to be inserted here without irreverence.' It was Johnson. 8 Dryden has quoted two verses of Virgil to show how well he could have written satires. Shakspeare has here given a specimen of the same power, by a line bit ter beyond all bitterness, in which Timon tells Apeman tus that he had not virtue enough for the vices which he condemns. Dr. Warburton explains worst by lowest, which somewhat weakens the sense, and yet leaves it sufficiently vigorous. very likely to make a deep impression upon Shak- 9 Curiosity is scrupulous exactness, finical niceness speare's mind. But indeed no one can read it without Baret explains it picked diligence, Accuratus corporis emotion. Johusen copied his extract from Birch's Me-cultus. A waiting gentlewoman should flee affection or moirs of Queen Elizabeth, and has erroneously printed curiosity,' (i. e. affectation or overniceness.)-It some deceivers for divines. times means scrupulous anxiety, precision. Tim. Would'st thou have thyself fall in the confusion of men, and remain a beast with the beasts? Apem. Ay, Timon. ACT IV Thy grave-stone daily make thine epitaph, "Twixt natural son and sire! thou bright defiler tongue, Tim. A beastly ambition, which the gods grant thee to attain to! If thou wert the lion, the fox would beguile thee: if thou wert the lamb, the fox would eat thee: if thou wert the fox, the lion would suspect thee, when, peradventure, thou wert accused by the ass: if thou wert the ass, thy dulness would torment thee; and still thou livedst but as a breakfast to the wolf: if thou wert the wolf, thy And mak'st them kiss! that speak'st with every greediness would afflict thee, and oft thou should'st hazard thy life for thy dinner: wert thou the uni-To every purpose! O thou touch" of hearts! ́corn, pride and wrath would confound thee, and Think, thy slave man rebels; and by thy virtue make thine own self the conquest of thy fury: Set them into confounding odds, that beasts wert thou a bear, thou would'st be kill'd by the May have the world in empire! horse wert thou a horse, thou would'st be seized by the leopard: wert thou a leopard, thou wert But not till I am dead!—I'll say thou hast gold: Apem. 'Would 'twere so ;german to the lion, and the spots of thy kindred Thou wilt be throng'd to shortly. were jurors on thy life: all thy safety were remotion, and thy defence, absence. What beast could'st thou be, that were not subject to a beast? and what a beast art thou already, that seest not thy loss in transformation? Apem. If thou could'st please me with speaking to me, thou might'st have hit upon it here: The commonwealth of Athens is become a forest of beasts. Tim. How has the ass broke the wall, that thou art out of the city? Apem. Yonder comes a poet and a painter: The plague of company light upon thee! I will fear to catch it, and give way: When I know not what else to do, I'll see thee again. Tim. When there is nothing living but thee, thou shalt be welcome. I had rather be a beggar's dog, than Apemantus. Apem. Thou art the cap of all the fools alive. Tim. 'Would thou wert clean enough to spit upon. Apem. A plague on thee, thou art too bad to curse. Tim. All villains, that do stand by thee, are pure. Apem. There is no leprosy but what thou speak'st. I'll beat thee,-but I should infect my hands. Арет. 'Would thou would'st burst. Thou tedious rogue! I am sorry, A stone by thee. Apem. Beast! Tim. Slave! Apem. Tim. shall lose Away, [Throws a stone at him. Toad! 1 Alluding to the unicorn's being sometimes overcome from striking his horn into a tree in his furious pursuit of an enemy See Gesner's History of Animals, and Julius Cæsar, Act ii. Sc. 1. 2 This seems to imply that the lion bears, like the Turk, no brother near the throne.' Thief. Where should he have this gold? It is mainder: The mere want of gold, and the fallingsome poor fragment, some slender ort of his refrom of his friends, drove him into this melancholy. 2 Thief. It is noised, he hath a mass of treasure. care not for't, he will supply us easily; If he covet3 Thief. Let us make the assay upon him; if he ously reserve it, how shall's get it? 2 Thief. True; for he bears it not about him, 'tis hid. 3 Both Steevens and Malone are wrong in their ex-Your greatest want is that you expect supplies from me, planation of remotion here; which is neither removing of whom you can reasonably expect nothing. Your from place to place,' nor remoteness; but removing necessities are indeed desperate, when you apply to one away, removing afar off. Remotio.' in my situation. Dr. Farmer would point the passage differently, thus: 4 1. e. the top, the principal. 5 See Act iii. Sc. 4. 6 Warburton remarks that the imagery here is ex quisitely beautiful and sublime. 7 Touch for touchstone: 'O Buckingham, now do I play the touch, To try if thou be'st current gold.' 8 The old copy reads, Enter the Banditti.' 9 The old copy reads: 'Your greatest want is, you want much of meat.' "Your greatest want is, you want much. Of meat Why should you want,' &c. 10 Limited professions are allowed professions. Thus in Macbeth : I'll make so bold to call, for 'tis my limited service.' I will request the reader to correct my explanation of li mited in Macbeth, where I have unintentionally allowed the old glossarial explanation to stand, which interprets it appointed. Here's gold Go, suck the subtle blood of the grape 1 Thief. "Tis in the malice of mankind, that he thus advises us; not to have us thrive in our mys Is yon despis'd and ruinous man my lord? What viler thing upon the earth, than friends, Tim. What, dost thou weep?-Come nearer ;-- Because thou art a woman, and disclaim'st Flav. I beg of you to know me, good my lord, Tim. Had I a steward so true, so just, and now My dangerous nature mild. Let me behold Methinks thou art more honest now, than wise ;' 1 If not a usuring kindness; and as rich men deal gifts, Expecting in return twenty for one? Flav. No, my most worthy master, in whose breast Doubt and suspect, alas, are plac'd too late You should have fear'd false times, when you did feast: Suspect still comes where an estate is least. That which I show, heaven knows, is merely love, Care of your food and living: and, believe it, For any benefit that points to me, Either in hope, or present, I'd exchange For this one wish, That you had power and wealth Those that would mischief me, than those that do! To requite me, by making rich yourself. He has caught me in his eye: I will present Have you forgot me, sir? thee. Flay. An honest poor servant of yours. I know thee not: I ne'er had honest man Then The gods are witness, 1 The moon is called the moist star in Hamlet, and the poet in the last scene of The Tempest has shown that he was acquainted with her influence on the tides. The watery beams of the moon are spoken of in Romeo and Juliet. The sea is therefore said to resolve her into salt tears, in allusion to the flow of the tides, and perhaps of her influence upon the weather, which she is said to govern. There is an allusion to the lachrymose nature of the planet in the following apposite passage in King Richard III: That I, being govern'd by the walry moon, May bring forth plenteous tears to drown the world.' 2 i. e. compost, manure. There is no hour in a man's life so wretched but he always has it in his power to become true, i. e. hongst.' 4 An alteration of honour, is an alteration of an *bonourable state to a state of disgrace. 5 How rarely, i.e. how admirably. So in Much Ado About Nothing, Act iii. Sc. 1, how rarely featur'd,' 6 i. e. desired. Friends and enemies here mean those who profess friendship and profess enmity. The proverb Defend me from my friends, and from my Tim. Look thee, 'tis so!-Thou singly honest man, Here, take-the gods out of my misery And may diseases lick up their falso bloods! Flav. O, let me stay, 1 And comfort you, my master. enemics I will defend myself,' is a sufficient comment 7 To give is to yield, to give way to tears It almost turns My dangerous nature wild. The emendation is Warburton's. Timon's dangerous nature is his savage wildness, a species of frenzy induced by the basenees and ingratitude of the world. It would be idle to talk of turning a dangerous nature wild the kindness and fidelity of Timon's steward was more likely to soften and compose him; and he does indeed show himself more mild and gentle to Flavius in consequence, being moved by the tears of his affection ate servant. 9 I think with Mr. Tyrwhitt that If not has slipped in here by an error of the compositor, caught from the Is not of the preceding line. Both sense and metre would be better without it. 10 i. c. away from human habitation. ACT V. SCENE I. The same. Before Timon's Cave. Pock. What's to be thought of him? Does the rumour hold for true, that he is so full of gold? Pain. Certain Alcibiades reports it, Phrynia and Timandra had gold of him: he likewise enriched poor straggling soldiers with great quantity: 'Tis said, he gave unto his steward a mighty sum. Poet. Then this breaking of his has been but a try for his friends. Pain. Nothing else; you shall see him a palm in Athens again, and flourish with the highest. There fore, 'tis not amiss, we tender our loves to him, in this supposed distress of his: it will show honestly in us; and is very likely to load our purposes with what they travel for, if it be a just and true report that goes of his having. Poet. What have you now to present unto him? Pain. Nothing at this time but my visitation: only I will promise him an excellent piece. Poet. I must serve him so too; tell him of an intent that's coming toward him. Pain. Good as the best. Promising is the very air o' the time: it opens the eyes of expectation; performance is ever the duller for his act; and, but in the plainer and simpler kind of people, the deed of saying is quite out of use. To promise is most courtly and fashionable: performance is a kind of will or testament, which argues a great sickness in his judgment that makes it. Tim. Excellent workman! Thou canst not paint a man so bad as is thyself. Poet. I am thinking, what I shall say I have provided for him: It must be a personating of himself: a satire against the softness of prosperity; with a discovery of the infinite flatteries, that follow youth and opulency. Tim. Must thou needs stand for a villain in thine own work? Wilt thou whip thine own faults in other men? Do so, I have gold for thee. Poet. Nay, let's seek him: Then do we sin against our own estate, Pain. True; When the day serves, before black-corner'd night,^ Tim. I'll meet you at the turn. What a god's gold, Than where swine feed! "Tis thou that rigg'st the bark, and plough'st the foam; Settlest admired reverence in a slave: [Advancing. Poet. Hail, worthy Timon! Having often of your open bounty tasted, 1 The poet and painter were within view when Apemantus parted from Timon; they must therefore be supposed to have been wandering about the woods in search of Timon's cave, and to have heard in the interim The particulars of Timon's bounty to the thieves and the steward. But (as Malone observes) Shakspeare was not attentive to these minute particulars, and if he and the audience knew these circumstances, he would not scruple to attribute the knowledge to persons who perhaps had not yet an opportunity of acquiring it.' 2 The doing of that we have said we would do. Thus in Hamlet: As he in his peculiar act and force 3 Personating for representing simply. The subject of this projected satire was Timon's case, not his person. Not all the whips of heaven are large enough— What to you! Whose starlike nobleness gave life and influence Tim. Let it go naked, men may see't the better Pain. He, and myself, Tim. Most honest men! Why, how shall I re- Can you eat roots, and drink cold water? no. I am sure you have: speak truth; you are honest men. Pain. So it is said, my noble lord: but therefore Came not my friend, nor I. Tim. Good honest men :-Thou draw'st a coun- Best in all Athens: thou art, indeed, the best; So, so, my That thou art even natural in thine art.— Both. Beseech your honour, That mightily deceives you. Both. Will you, indeed? Do we, my lord? Tim. Ay, and you hear him cog, see him dissem ble, Know his gross patchery, love him, feed him, Pain. I know none such, my lord. Nor I. Tim. Look you, I love you well; I'll give you Rid me these villains from your companies: Both. Name them, my lord, let's know them. Each man apart, all single and alone, 4 Black-corner'd night. Many conjectures, have been offered about this passage, which appears to me a Some have proposed to read corruption of the text." black-coned, alluding to the conical form of the earth's shadow; others black-crown'd, and black-cover'd. It appears to me that it should be black-curtain'd. We have the blanket of the dark,' in Macbeth, 'Night's black mantle,' in the Third Part of King Henry VI. and the First Part of the same drama: |