The redundancy of the first line has been cured by the omission of “you;" but the editors have not attempted to remedy the deficiency of the second line.-Sidney Walker (Shakespeare's Versification, &c. p. 136) says, “We ought to arrange,— Cas. Now, Brutus, thank yourself;' a six-syllable line:" but qy? O flatterers ! Flatterers! P. 356. (4) "Never, till Cæsar's three-and-thirty wounds Have added slaughter to the sword of traitors." Here Theobald altered “three-and-thirty" to "three and twenty."-Ritson advocates the old reading, observing that Beaumont and Fletcher have fallen into a similar mistake in their Noble Gentlemen, where they speak of "Cæsar's two and thirty wounds."-In the last line Mr. Collier's Ms. Corrector reads to the word of traitors,”— "-a most unhappy alteration. Surely, Octavius means "or till you, traitors, have added the crime of slaying me (another Cæsar) to that of having murdered Julius." P. 357. (55) "The storm is up, and all is on the hazard. Bru. Ho, Lucilius! hark, a word with you. My lord?" Here some editors have omitted "Ho," while some others have adopted the very awkward arrangement,— (which Sidney Walker (Shakespeare's Versification," &c. p. 76) would make still more objectionable by printing, That, when proper names are introduced, Shakespeare does not always observe strict measure, we have already had several proofs in other plays: and compare, in this tragedy, p. 349, "Lucilius and Titinius, bid the commanders Indeed, the present passage is immediately followed by an instance of it, 66 our for After the notes in the Varior. Shakespeare on this passage, I cannot but wonder at Mr. Collier's saying that the alteration of his Ms. Corrector, ward ensign," &c., "is probably right." Has been altered, most unnecessarily, to "The term of life," &c. P. 359. (58) "[Pindarus goes up." Here the folio has no stage-direction; but to the next speech of Pindarus it prefixes " Aboue,"-which proves that, when this play was originally acted, Pindarus took his station on the upper-stage. P. 362. (59) "The last of all the Romans," &c. Rowe printed "Thou last of," &c.: but see Malone's note ad l. P. 362. (60) “Come, therefore, and to Thassos send his body : Lest it discomfort us." The folio has " and to Tharsus send," &c.-The more correct form of the name is Thasos or Thasus: but, as Steevens observes, "it is Thassos in Sir Thomas North's translation [of Plutarch]:”—where the words are; “and sent it to the citie of Thassos, fearing lest his funerals within his campe should cause great disorder." p. 1010, ed. 1612. This shows how improperly “funerals" in our text has been altered to "funeral:" and compare, in p. 14 of the present vol., "and wise Laertes' son Did graciously plead for his funerals.” and Beaumont and Fletcher's Valentinian, act v. sc. 2, Nor is the alteration required on account of the “it,” considering how that pronoun was formerly used. P. 364. (61) “Hold thou my sword-hilts, whilst,” &c. Altered in the third folio to “. my Swords hilt, whilst," &c.,-without regard to the older phraseology. SIWARD, earl of Northumberland, general of the English forces. Young SIWARD, his son. SEYTON, an officer attending on Macbeth. Boy, son to Macduff. An English Doctor. A Scotch Doctor. A Soldier. A Porter. An Old Man. Lady MACBETH. Lady MACDUFF. Gentlewoman attending on Lady Macbeth. Lords, Gentlemen, Officers, Soldiers, Murderers, Attendants, and Messengers. Hecate. Three Witches. SCENE―in the end of the fourth act, in England; through the rest of the play, in Scotland. |