Remarks, Critical, Conjectural, and Explanatory, Upon the Plays of Shakspeare

whom I have seen, inasmuch as that diamond outlustres many that I have beheld, I could, indeed, believe she excelled many; but, the most precious diamond in the world has not been seen by me, nor the most precious lady by you.

434. "If, in the holding or loss of that, you term her frail."

If in the holding loosely, or so that she may lose it.

435. "You are a friend, and therein the wiser." "Therein" refers not to friendship, but to the objection of Posthumus to wage his ring.

436. "I see, you have some religion in you, that you fear."

i. e. In that, or by reason that you fear.

SCENE VI.

I will try the forces

Of these thy compounds on such crea

tures as

"We count not worth the hanging-
"To try the vigour of them."

"Forces" seems here to mean, properties, specific agency, and vigour, and the extent of that

agency.

441. "Dost thou think, in time

"She will not quench?"

"Quench," says Mr. Steevens, is grow cold; but this definition, I believe, will hardly be admitted the sense intended seems to be the ardour or flame of her passion is to be extinguished by her tears.

SCENE VII.

443. Imogen. "A father cruel," &c.

Mr. Eccles makes this the beginning of the 2d Act; and his reasons, I think, are cogent.

"That hath her husband banish'd.”

I know not whether Imogen, here, reproaches herself as being the cause of her husband's banishment, or that she only means to reflect that she has a husband, who is banished.

444. "Had I been thief-stolen

"As my two brothers, happy!"

"Thief-stolen" is a strange pleonasm; the ellipsis, too, is hardly warrantable: had I been thief-stolen I should be happy; or, O how happy should I be.

446. "She is alone the Arabian bird.”

This is tautology; the phoenix necessarily implies singleness, or what is alone.

"She is alone," &c.

Perhaps we should point

"She is alone; the Arabian bird.”

B. STRUTT.

449. "Ideots, in this case of favour, would "Be wisely definite."

This thought occurs in Hamlet, Act 3:

"Nor sense to ecstasy was ne'er so thrall'd,
"But it reserv'd some quantity of choice
"To serve in such a difference.".

450. "Desire vomit emptiness."

Mr. Capel ingeniously suggested, vomit to emptiness, and so the sense is.-Sluttery, so opposed, would turn desire into disgust, and make the person who cherished it emit or vomit it forth wholly.

451. "He is strange and peevish."

Strange" is unpracticed, not habituated: thus, in Macbeth:

My strange, and self-abuse

"Is the initiate fear that wants hard use.”

And again, in Romeo and Juliet:

"Till strange love grown more bold,
"Thinks true-love acted simple modesty."

454. "In himself, 'tis much," &c.

Mr. Malone appears to misconceive this passage: the compound "'tis," I believe, refers to "heaven's bounty," which furnished Posthumus with rare perfections in himself; that bounty is eminently displayed in you, which I call his: it is beyond all former rate of talents, virtues and accomplishments. If this be not the meaning of

beyond all talents;" and I am by no means satisfied with the exposition, I must give it up. 455. "What both you spur and stop."

This kind of ellipsis, says Mr. Malone, is com

mon in these plays; but there is, here, no ellipsis, though somewhat of a transposition from the natural structure of the sentence:-what, at the same time, you urge and restrain; what you seem, at once, desirous and reluctant to reveal. 456. "

Not I

“Inclin'd to this intelligence, pronounce "The beggary of his change," &c.

"I not do" has been noted as vicious, though not uncommon idiom :-this is still worse, "not I pronounce," as admitting a sense different from what is designed—not I, but some other does pronounce, &c.

459. "For such an end thou seek'st.”

This is imperfectly expressed; it should be: "For such end as thou seek'st."

461. "To try your taking of a false report; which hath."

How Mr. Steevens meant to repair the metre here, we can only guess, for this is his note ;"Old copy, vulgarly, and unmetrically, "taking of a."-I suppose he designed to eject" of;" but that alone would only make bad much worse. would adopt Mr. Capel's reading:

"To try you by a false report, which hath." Or may we read, "taking off a false report," i. e. confuting the accusation.

6.6

Which hath

"Honour'd with confirmation your great judg

ment

"In the election of a sir so rare, Which you know, cannot err."

i. e. His venturing to try her by a false report hath had the effect of shewing, confirmed, her great judgement, in the election of a sir, &c. which (i. e. who) cannot err. The construction is very perverse.

ACT II. SCENE II.

466. "I have read three hours then: mine eyes are weak.