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Fool. Thou fhouldst not have been old, till thou hadft been wife.

Lear. O, let me not be mad, not mad, fweet heaven! Keep me in temper; I would not be mad!

Enter Gentleman.

How now! are the horfes ready?

Gent. Ready, my lord.

Lear. Come, boy.

Fool. She that's a maid now, and laughs at my de

parture,

Shall not be a maid long, unless things be cut fhorter.

ACT

II.

[Exeunt.

SCENE I.

A caftle belonging to the earl of Glofter.

Enter Edmund and Curan, feverally.

EDMUND,

SAVE thee, Curan.

Cur. And you, Sir. I have been with your father, and given him notice that the duke of Cornwall and Regan his dutchefs will be here with him to-night.

Edm. How comes that?

Cur. Nay, I know not: you have heard of the news abroad; I mean the whifper'd ones, for they are yet but ear-kifling arguments.

I

I

Edm. Not I; pray you, what are they?

ear-kiffing arguments.] Subjects of difcourfe;

topics. JOHNSON.

Ear-ifing arguments means no more than that they are yet in reality only whisper'd ones. STEEVENS.

Cur,

Cur. Have you heard of no likely wars toward, 'twixt the dukes of Cornwall and Albany?

Edm. Not a word.

Cur. You may do then in time. Fare you well, Sir. [Exit. Edm. The duke be here to-night! The better! best! This weaves itself perforce into my business; My father hath fet guard to take my brother, And I have one thing, of a queazy queftion, Which I must act.-Briefness, and fortune work!— Brother, a word:-descend.—Brother, I say———— Enter Edgar.

2

My father watches: O Sir, fly this place,
Intelligence is given where you are hid;

You have now the good advantage of the night :-
Have you not spoken 'gainst the duke of Cornwall?
He's coming hither, now, i' the night, 3 i' the hafte,
And Regan with him; 4 have you nothing faid
Upon his party 'gainst the duke of Albany?
Advise yourself.

2

queazy question,] Something of a fufpicious, questionable, and uncertain nature. This is, I think, the meaning. JOHNS. Queazy, I believe, rather means delicate, what requires to be handled nicely. So Ben Jonfon in Sejanus,

"Those times are fomewhat queafy to be touch'd.
"Have you not feen or read part of his book?"

So in Ben Jonfon's New Inn,

3

"Notes of a queafy and fick ftomach, labouring
"With want of a true injury."- STEEVENS.

'the hafte,] I fhould fuppofe we ought to read only in hafte; i' the being repeated accidentally by the prefs-fetter."

4

have you nothing faid

STEEVENS.

Upon his party 'gainst the duke of Albany ?] The meaning is, have you faid nothing upon the party formed by him against the duke of Albany? HANMER.

I cannot but think the line corrupted, and would read, Againft his party, for the duke of Albany? JOHNSON.

Edg.

Edg. I am fure on't, not a word.

Edm. I hear my father coming.-Pardon me: In cunning, I muft draw my fword upon you :Draw; feem to defend yourfelf: now quit you well. Yield:-come before my father;-light ho, here! Fly, brother-Torchés! torches !-So farewell

[Exit Edgar. Some blood, drawn on me, would beget opinion [Wounds his arm. Of my more fierce endeavour. I have feen drunkards Do more than this in fport. Father! father! Stop, ftop! No help?

Enter Glofter, and Servants with torches.

Glo. Now, Edmund, where's the villain?
Edm. Here ftood he in the dark, his sharp fword

out,

5 Mumbling of wicked charms, conjuring the moon To ftand his aufpicious miftrefs.

Glo. But where is he?
Edm. Look, Sir, I bleed.
Glo. Where is the villain,
Edm. Fled this way, Sir.
could-

Edmund ?

When by no means he

Glo. Purfue him, ho.-Go after.By no means,

what?

Edm. Perfuade me to the murther of your lordship; But that, I told him, the revenging gods 'Gainft parricides did all their thunder bend, Spoke, with how manifold and ftrong a bond The child was bound to the father.—Sir, in fine,

5 Mumbling of wicked charms, conjuring the moon] This was a proper circumftance to urge to Glo'fter; who appears, by what paffed between him and his baftard fon in a foregoing fcene, to be very fuperftitious with regard to this matter.

6

WARBURTON.

their thunder- -] Firft quarto; the rest have it, the thunder. JOHNSON.

Seeing how lothly oppofite I stood
To his unnatural purpose, in fell motion
With his prepared fword, he charges home
My unprovided body, lanc'd my arm :
And when he saw my beft alarmed fpirits,
Bold in the quarrel's right, rous'd to the encounter,
Or whether 7 gafted by the noise I made,
But fuddenly he fled.

Glo. Let him fly far:

Not in this land shall he remain uncaught;

And found-Dispatch.-The noble duke my master,
My worthy 9 arch and patron, comes to-night;
By his authority I will proclaim it,

That he, who finds him, fhall deferve our thanks,
Bringing the murtherous coward to the stake;
He that conceals him, death.

Edm. When I diffwaded him from his intent, 2 And found him pight to do it, with curst speech I threaten'd to discover him: he replied,

• Thou unpoffeffing baftard! doft thou think,

7 gafted] Frighted. JOHNSON.

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So in Beaumont and Fletcher's Wit at feveral Weapons, —either the fight of the lady has gafted him, or "elfe he's drunk." STEEVENS.

8 Not in this land fhall be remain uncaught;

And found difpatch-the noble duke, &c.] This nonfenfe fhould be read and pointed thus,

Not in this land shall he remain uncaught;

And found, difpatch'd.

WARBURTON.

I do not fee how this change mends the fenfe: I think it may be better regulated as in the page above. The fenfe is interrupted. He fhall be caught and found, he shall be punished. Difpatch. JOHNSON.

-

arch] i. e. Chief; a word now ufed only in compofition, as arch-angel, arch-duke. STEEVENS.

- murtherous coward

caitiff. JOHNSON.

-] The first edition reads,

2 And found him pight to do it, with curft fpeech] Pight is pitched, fixed, fettled. Curft is fevere, harfh, vehemently angry. JOHNSON.

If

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If I would ftand against thee, 3 would the repofal
Of any truft, virtue, or worth in thee
Make thy words faith'd? no: what I fhould deny,
(As this I would, ay, though thou didst produce
My very character) I'd turn it all

To thy fuggeftion, plot, and damned practice:
And thou must make a dullard of the world,
If they not thought the profits of my death
Were very pregnant and potential fpurs
To make thee feek it.'

[Trumpets within. Glo. Oftrange, fasten'd villain !

Would he deny his letter, faid he?-I never got him. Hark, the duke's trumpets! I know not why he

comes.

All ports I'll bar; the villain fhall not 'scape;
The duke muft grant me that: befides, his picture
I will fend far and near, that all the kingdom
May have due note of him: and of my land,
Loyal and natural boy, I'll work the means
To make thee capable.

Enter Cornwall, Regan, and Attendants.

Corn. How now, my noble friend? Since I came hither,

Which I can call but now) I have heard strange news.

Reg. If it be true, all vengeance comes too fhort, Which can pursue the offender. How does my lord? Glo. O madam, my old heart is crack'd, is crack'd! Reg. What, did my father's godfon feek your life? He whom my father nam'd? Your Edgar?

3

Glo. O lady, lady, fhame would have it hid!

would the repofal] i. e. Would any opinion that men have repofed in thy truft, virtue, &c. WARBURTON.

The old quarto reads, could the repofure. STEEVENS. + Strong and feftened. Quarto. JOHNSON.

4

Reg.

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