b

Thy dowerlefs daughter, king, thrown to my chance,
Is queen of us, of ours, and our fair France;
Not all the duke's in wat'rifh Burgundy

d Shall buy this unpriz'd, precious maid of me.
Bid them farewell, Cordelia, though unkind;
Thou lofefte here, a better e where to find.

Lear. Thou haft her, France; let her be thine, for we Have no fuch daughter; nor fhall ever fee

That face of her's again; therefore be gone

Without our grace, f our love, our benizon.
Come, noble Burgundy.

[Flourish. Exeunt Lear and

Burgundy.

SCENE IV.

France. Bid farewel to your fifters.

Cor. The jewels of our father, with wafh'd eyes
Cordelia leaves you; I know h you what you are,
And, like a fifter, am most loth to call

Your faults as they are nam'd. Love well our father;
To your i profeffed bofoms I commit him;

But yet, alas! ftood I within his grace,

I would prefer him to a better place.
So farewel to you both.

b The qu's read thy for my.

So the qu's; all the rest read of for in.

So the qu's; all the reft read can for fall.

e Here and where are converted into nouns in this place.

7. inferts without again before our love.

So the qu's, fo's, and R.'s octavo; all the rest read ye for the.

h All before R.'s duodecime have you, all the rest omit it, except Steevens.

iSo all before P. who alters professed to profeffing, followed by all the rest.

Be to content your lord, who hath receiv'd you

At fortune's alms; you have obedience fcanted,

n

And well are worth the "want that you have " wanted.

Cor. Time fhall unfold what plaited cunning hides, Who cover faults, at laft 9 fhame them derides.

Well may you profper!

France. Come, my fair Cordelia.

[Exeunt France and

Cordelia.

SCENE V.

S

Gon. Sifter, it is not a little I have to say

Of what most nearly appertains to us both.
I think our father will hence to-night.

The qu's give this fpeech to Gonerill, and the next to Regan.

So the qu's; all the rest read duty.

The qu's read worth for want.

vant, &c.

H. reads And well are worthy to

n. alters this to vaunted, and gives the following note; -wanted] This nonfenfe must be corrected thus,

And well are worth the want that you have vaunted.

ì. e. that disherifon, which you so much glory in, you deserve. W.

But did the not rather glory in her modesty and fincerity, which occafioned that difherifon? The old reading is not elegant indeed, but it is intelligible: it is a kind of Hebraifm, like feeding feed, Gen. i. 29.

• The qu's read pleated; the fo's, R. and P.'s q. plighted; all the ref plaited.

P H. reads cover'd; all other editions covers.

9 So the qu's; all the reft read with fhame for fhame them.

r The qu's omit my.

? P. alters I have to I've; followed by the rest.

R. and all after read will go hence.

Reg:

Reg. That's "moft certain, and with you; next month

with us.

W

Gon. You fee how full of changes his age is, the observation we have made of it hath not been little; he always lov'd our sister most, and with what poor judgment he hath now cast her off, appears too y grofly.

Reg. 'Tis the infirmity of his age; yet he hath ever but flenderly known himself.

Gon. The best and foundest of his time hath been but rafh; then must we look, z from his age to receive not alone the a imperfections of long ingrafted condition, but therewithal the unruly waywardness, that infirm and choleric years bring with them.

Reg. Such unconstant starts are we like to have from him, as this of Kent's banishment.

Gon. There is further compliment of leave-taking between d France and him. e Pray you, let us f hit together. If our father carry authority, with fuch & difpofitions as he bears, this last furrender of his will but offend us.

Reg. We fhall further think "on't.

Gon. We must do something, and i'th' heat.

[Exeunt.

u In all the editions till P. who, with all after him, omits most. w The fo's and R. omit not.

x The 2d, 3d, and 4th fo's, and R. read appears too too grofly. The qu's read grosse.

z The qu's read to receive from his age.

a The qu's read imperfection.

b The qu's omit the.

c The 2d q. reads stars.

d Hanmer reads Burgundy for France.
The qu's read pray let's hit, &c.

f Fo's, R. P. and H. read fit for hit.
So the qu's; all the reft difpofition.
So the qu's; all the rest of it for on't.

B 3

SCENE

SCENE VI.

i A caftle belonging to the earl of Gloucefter. Enter Bastard with a letter.

Baft. Thou, Nature, art my goddefs; to thy law My fervices are bound; wherefore fhould I

Stand in the plague of custom, and permit

The courtesy of nations to deprive me,

For that I am some twelve or fourteen moonshines

m

Lag of a brother? Why baftard? wherefore bafe?
When my dimenfions are as well compact,

My mind as generous, and my fhape as true,
As honeft madam's iffue?

Why brand they us " with base, base bastardy?
Who, in the lufty ftealth of nature, take
More compofition and fierce quality; .

Than doth within a dull, ftale tired bed

i The scene is not described in either qu's, fo's, or R. This is called fcena fecunda in fo's.

k W. remarks, that to ftand in the plague of cuftom, is an abfurd expreffion. We should read plage, i. e. the place, the country, the boundary of cuftom. Why should I, when I profefs to follow the freedom of nature, be confined within the narrow limits of custom? Plage is a word in common ufe amongst the old English writers. So Chaucer, The plagis of the north by land and fea. From plaga. W.

I The qu's, fo's, and R. curiofity; P. nicety; T. and the rest courtesy. m H. reads and why baftard? bafe?

n So the qu's; all the reft with bafe, with bafenefs, baftardy, bafe, base;

but then they make why brand they us, a part of the foregoing line. But

in this reading there seems to be too much repetition.

o R.'s oft. that.

P The qu's, aftale, dull, lyed (ad q. lied) bed.

Go

S

Go to 9 the creating of a whole tribe of fops,
Got 'tween asleep and wake? Well then,'
Legitimate Edgar, I must have your land;
Our father's love is to the baftard Edmund,
As to th❜legitimate; " fine word-legitimate!-
Well, my legitimate, if this letter speed,
And my invention thrive, Edmund the base
Shall w top th' legitimate. I grow, I profper;
Now, gods, ftand up for bastards.

Glo. Kent banish'd thus! and France in choler parted! And the king gone to-night! *fubfcrib'd his power! Confin'd to exhibition! y all this done

Upon the gad!-Edmund, how now? what news?

The fo's and R. read th'; all the rest omit the.

So the qu's; the rest omit of.

The 2d q. omits a.

t H. adds after then, good brother, to fill up the measure; the qu's read the for then.

u The qu's omit fine word-legitimate!—

w The qu's read tooth'; the fo's, R. and P.'s q. to'th'; H. toe th'; which he interprets, being upon even ground with him, as the treading on another's heels fignifies the being not far behind him: but if toe be read, J. would have it signify, to kick out, or fupplant. P.'s duodecimo reads be 'th; followed by T. W. and J. But perhaps Shakespear wrote top th' legitimate. i. e. get above him; the corruption of this, by writing an o instead of a p, was very easy. If a conjecture be made without any regard to the traces of the letters, out, or rout, are better than be.

* The fo's and R. read prefcrib'd.

Y So the qu's, ift f. and J. the three laft fo's and R. read all this gone, which P. alters all is gone.