Orthumper," says Holinshed, "whether Iment of King Richarde putting diffidence r the love and favour he bare unto the earle still with a great company, and intermixed ch was [after the battle] incontinently remade of the counsayle." Malone. shut time,] Ben Jonson uses the same exentertainments: id not yesternight, he cock-shut light." u,by Ben Jonson, Fletcher, and Middleton, den: a fine cockshut evening." arsham, 1592: cockshut light." shinge with the Angle, by dame Julyana ne directions to make a fishing rod is the ne and frette him faste with a cockeshote interpret the word. Steevens. twilight. In Mr. Whalley's note upon Ber "A Cockshut is said to be a net to catch time of taking them in this manner is in -r sun-set or before its rising, cock-shut light ess the evening or the morning twilight." such a net, and the manner of using it, bed in Dictionarium Rusticum, 2 Vols 8vo word cock-roads. It is the custom of the day, and towards evening he takes wing, at anciently be termed his shoot or shot is said to shoot, when it runs from one side ology gives us, perhaps, the original sigithout any recourse for it to the name of se its denomination from the time of the on which it was used; for I believe there led a cock-shot. Holinshed's Description stone which naturally has a hole in it. devil to run through;" which, I appremblance of the hole in the stone to the Went through the army, cheering up the soldiers. K. Rich. I am satisfied. Give me a bowl of wine: I have not that alacrity of spirit, Nor cheer of mind, that I was wont to have. So, set it down. 3-Is ink and paper ready? Rat. It is, my lord. K. Rich. Bid my guard watch; leave me. About the mid of night, come to my tent And help to arm me.--Leave me, I say. [K. RICH. retires into his Tent. Exeunt RAT. and CATES. admits, and then proceeds to overthrow it. And I will support it by the very instance Mr. Steevens adduced in his favour. The ballast of a ship may be said to shoot; as we now say, to shoot coals, or corn out of a sack; but it was never yet said that a woodcock shoots, when he takes his evening flight. Cocke-shoote, in the passage Mr. Steevens cites, is certainly a substantive, and the accusative case after the verb watch, which is confirmed by what follows, or a limed bush. And when the cockshut net is fixed a person always stands by to watch and manage it. A similar expression is in Hall's Satires : "To watch a sinking cock, upon the shore." Whalley. The passage from Hall is misquoted. He alludes to Fishing, and says "Or watch a sinking corke upon the shore." Edit. 1602, Virgidemiarum, Lib. IV, p. 33. Steevens. That cockshut time meant twilight, is ascertained by Minsheu's Dictionary, 1617. See the latter word. Malone. Ogilby, in his Paraphrase of Æsop's Fables, 4to. 1651, p. 6, introduces this expression in a way which perhaps strengthens Mr. Tollet's opinion that cock-shoot was taken from the flight of the woodcock. He makes the pine boast: 66 - when loud winds make cock-shoots thro' the wood, "Rending down mighty okes, I firme have stood." Here, I apprehend, Ogilby means to describe hurricanes which, by blowing down the trees, made glades or partial openings in the woods. H. White. 2 I have not that alacrity of spirit, &c.] So, in Holinshed, p. 775: "-not using the alacritie of mirth and mind and countenance as he was accustomed to doo before he came toward the battell." Steevens. 3 So, set it down.] The word So in the old copies stands at the beginning of the first line of this speech, caught perhaps by the compositor's eye glancing on the line below. Mr. Steevens made the emendation. In Richard's next speech the word Ratcliff is prefixed to the second line, but the metre shows that it was placed there by the negligence of the compositor. Malone. RICHMOND'S Tent opens, and discovers him and his Officers, &c. Enter STANLEY. Stan. Fortune and victory sit on thy helm! Richm. All comfort that the dark night can afford, Stan. I, by attorney, bless thee from thy mother, 7 4 All comfort that the dark night can afford, 5-by attorney,] By deputation. Johnson. 6 mortal-staring war,] Thus the old copies. I suppose, by mortal-staring war is meant-war that looks big, or stares fatally on its victims. Steevens. I suspect the poet wrote-mortal-scaring war. Malone. I adhere to the old reading. So, in Antony and Cleopatra, Endbarbus says of Antony, who is issuing out to battle"Now he 'll out-stare the lightning." Again, in The Tempest: " why stand you "In this strange stare?" Steevens. 71, as I may, With best advantage will deceive the time, I will take the best opportunity to elude the dangers of this conjuncture. Johnson. 8 Lest, being seen, thy brother tender George Be executed-) So Holinshed after Hall: "When the said lord Stanley would have departed into his country to visit his familie, and to recreate and refreshe his spirits, as he openly said but the truth was to the intent to be in a perfite readinessè to Q2 Farewel: The leisure and the fearful time Richm. Good lords, conduct him to his regiment: join the earle of Richmonde at his first arrival in Englande,) the king in no wise would suffer him to depart before he had left as an hostage in the court, George Stanley, lord Strange, his first begotten son and heir." "The lord Stanley lodged in the same town, [Stafford] and hearing that the earle of Richmond was marching thitherward, gave to him place, dislodging him and his, -to avoid all suspicion, being afraide least if he should be seen openly to be a factor or ayder to the earle, his son-in-law, before the day of battayle, that king Richard, which yet not utterly put him in diffidence and mistrust, would put to some evil death his son and heir apparent." The young nobleman whom the poet calls George Stanley, was created Baron Strange, in right of his wife, by King Edward IV, in 1482. Malone. 9 The leisure and the fearful time Cuts off the ceremonious vows of love,] We have still a phrase equivalent to this, however harsh it may seem, I would do this, if leisure would permit, where leisure, as in this passage, stands for want of leisure. So again: 66 - More than I have said, "The leisure and enforcement of the time "Forbids to dwell upon "Johnson. That is, the small degree of leisure we have. M. Mason. 1 Lest leaden slumber-] So, in our author's Rape of Lucrece: "Now leaden slumber with life's strength doth fight." 2 Malone. -peise me down to-morrow,] Thus the old copies. The modern editions read-poize. To peize, i. e. to weigh down, from peser, French. I meet with this word in the old play of The Raigne of King Edward the Third, 1596: "And peize their deeds with heavy weight of lead." Again, in All for Money, 1574: "Then if you counterpeaze me learning with money." Again, in Christopher Middleton's Legend of Humphrey Duke of Glocester, 1600: "Nor was her schooles peis'd down with golden waights." See notes on The Merchant of Venice, Vol. IV, p 368. Steevens. When I should mount with wings of victory: Once more, good night, kind lords and gentlemen. [Exeunt Lords, &c. with STAN. O Thou! whose captain I account myself, Look on my forces with a gracious eye; [Sleeps. The Ghost of Prince EDWARD, Son to HENRY the Ghost. Let me sit heavy on thy soul to-morrow! 3 [To K. RICH. bruising irons) The allusion is to the ancient mace. Henley. 4 Ere I let fall the windows of mine eyes;] So, in Romeo and Ju liet: "thy eyes' windows fall "Like death-." Steevens. 5 The Ghost &c.] This circumstance is likewise found in Nichols's Legend of King Richard III, (inserted in The Mirrour for Magistrates, edit. 1610,) and was apparently imitated from Shak speare: "As in my tent on slumbring bed I lie, "Horrid aspects appear'd unto mine eye: "I thought that all those murder'd ghosts, whom I "By death had sent to their untimely grave, "With baleful noise about my tent did crye, "And of the heavens, with sad complaint, did crave "That they on guilty wretch might vengeance have." His terror on waking is likewise very forcibly described. Drayton, in the 22d Song of his Polyolbion, may likewise have. borrowed from our author: "Where to the guilty king, the black forerunning night, rend "Him piece-meal; at which oft he roareth in his sleep." Steevens. The account given by Polydore Virgil, which was copied by |