quently published 'Catch that Catch can,' as | Shakspere's plays, as is supposed to have been well as another work which he names. This is originally sung in them, or that may have been a question into which we shall not enter, our introduced in them shortly after their proonly object being to give such music, as part of | duction. 21 SCENE III.—“I see, love hath made thee a quently used to express a poor contemptible 22 SCENE III." It was a lover, and his lass: IN the Signet-Office library at Edinburgh is a MS. in 4to., formerly in the possession of Mr. Heber, containing many songs set to music, and among them the following. It seems quite clear that this manuscript cannot have been written later than sixteen years after the publication of the present play, and may have existed at a much earlier period; it is, therefore, not straining probability too hard to suppose that the air here inserted was, in some form-most likely as a duet, unless the two pages sang in unisonperformed in the play, either as this was originally acted, or not long after its production. But whether our conjecture-and only as such we offer it-be well or ill founded, there can be no doubt that the composition is one of those which, in musical chronology, is classed as ancient. We here give it, with the simple and modern accompaniment, as it is printed in the 'Collection of National Airs,' edited by Mr. Chappell (vol. i. p. 81), a valuable work, to which we have before been indebted. Royal, No. 6989) as supplying the hunting dress of the time. Many of the former are engraved in Montfaucon's 'Monarchie Française,' and some figures from the latter will be found in Mons. Willemin's superb work, 'Monumens inédites, &c.' The dress of a shepherd of this period may be found in Pynson's 'Shepherd's Kalendar:' and the splendid Harleian MS. No. 4425, presents us with the ordinary habits of an ecclesiastic when not clad in the sacred vestments of his office or order. tation on the clowns of Shakspere, has made the following remarks on the dress of this character:-"Touchstone is the domestic fool of Frederick, the duke's brother, and belongs to the class of witty or allowed fools. He is threatened with the whip, a mode of chastisement which was often inflicted on these motley personages. His dress should be a partycoloured garment. He should occasionally carry a bauble in his hand and wear ape's ears to his hood, which is probably the head-dress The late Mr. Douce, in his admirable disser- intended by Shakespeare, there being no allusion whatever to a cock's head or a comb." * See also Modus le Roy. Livre de Chasse.' Folio, Chambery, 1486. |