J
SHAKESPEARE'S CYMBELINE.
A time, however, may arrive, when a complete body of variations
being printed, our readers may luxuriate in an ample feast of thats and
whiches ; and thenceforward it may be prophesied, that all will unite in
a wish that the selection had been made by an editor, rather than submitted
to their own labour and sagacity. — Steevens.
Birmingham :
Printed by Robert Birbeck, Broad Street.
SHAKESPEARE'S CyMBELINE
"ilhc \Lcxt liebiseb ani) ^nnotatcb
BV
C M. IXGLEBY. LL.D.,
Honorary Member of the ' Deutsche Shakespeare-Gesellschaft ' of Weimar,
and of the * Shakespeare Society ' of New York.
LONDON:
TRUBNER & CO., 57, LUDGATE HILL.
1886.
(Dn this ^lai)
LIBRARY
^]mvK^;F^ITY of caltfornk
SAN 1 A BARBARA
I INSCRIBE THE NAME OF
KARL ELZE,
Jl ^ribittc to (Sfholarshi^r
AND A RECORD OF FRIENDSHIP.
C. M. I.
PRE FA TORY NO TES.
rrr
HE prima stamina of this drama are derived from
some version of Boccaccio's ninth novel of the
second day :* of this an admirable epitome is
given in Skottowe's Life of Shakespeare, 1824, vol. ii,
pp. 261 — 266 ; and this (which has been often employed
by editors) is reprinted at length by Mr. J. O. Halliwell
in his Folio Edition, vol. xv. The story of the wager,
to test a lady's virtue, is of very early origin, and
appears in many forms and languages ; of which the
earliest known in any tongue allied to English is that of
Gilbert de Montreuil, in his A. N. romance of La Violette,
1225. But it is no business of an editor to give a
history of the mytlius with which the play edited is
concerned.
* We know from the first complete English version of the Decameron,
1620, that many of the novels had long before been published in English ;
but only one English story founded upon the novel of Bernabo and Zinevra
was known to Steevens, and that was printed at Antwerp in 15 18.
vi Prefatory Notes.
In Shakespeare, the vtythus assumes a somewhat
different shape from any which the romance-writers have
handed down to our day. In the novel, some Italian
merchants happen to meet in Paris at supper, and fall
to discussing their wives. Three maintain an opinion
adverse to the ladies' loyalty, from which one Bernabo
Lomellia dissents. A fifth named Ambrogiulo provokes
Bernabo to propose a wager, which the former accepts,
to be decided by the result of his attempt to corrupt
Bernabo's wife, Zinevra. With this object, Ambrogiulo
goes to Genoa, where she lives, and bribes a char-woman
to convey a chest into the lady's bedroom, in which the
libertine is to secrete himself. By this stratagem he is
able to make a survey of Zinevra's bed-chamber after
she has retired to rest, and to note a mole, with a tuft of
golden hair, on her left breast ; and before returning to
the chest he steals her ring and other material tokens.
Bernabo, having lost the wager, gives an order that his
wife should be put to death ; but the servant employed
on this mission betrays his master, and Zinevra escaping
in boy's clothes becomes page to a Catalonian, and
ultimately goes into the service of the Sultan ; with
much else, which Shakespeare seems to have liberally
followed.
In a stor}-, founded on Boccaccio, printed in 1620,
entitled Westward for Smelts, there are passages, from
which Shakespeare appears to have borrowed some of
Prefatory Notes. vii
the details of his drama ; especially the conversation
between the lady, Mrs. Dorrill, and George, the servant
employed to kill her, as well as the denouement, where
she is page to King Edward IV, at the time of the battle
of Barnet, of whom she asks a boon, as Imogen does of
Cymbeline. By her means the villain is unmasked ;
when she thanks his Majesty, and goes up to her
unsuspecting husband, saying, " Sir, all my anger to you
I lay down with this kisse." So all is well ended, only
the villain has to pay a fine of thrice the wager, and
suffer a year's imprisonment.
But Shakespeare, whencesoever he may have obtained
his version of the story, sets it in an early British frame-
work, taken from that part of the C/wonicle of Holinshed,
1577, called "The historic of England," book iii,
chapters xiii — xviii ; in which last chapter we have the
life of Kymbeline or Cimbeline the sonne of Theomantitis*
This Theomantius, or Tenantius as he is called in the
same chapter, was the youngest son of Lud, who was
the eldest brother of Cassibellane. The borrowed
incidents are few and meagre ; and the poet's language
in describing them is correspondingly bald and prosaic.
* According to Holinshed the birth of Christ was in the 23rd year of
Cymbeline's reign. " He reigned 35 years, & then died and was buried in
London, leaving behind him two sonnes, Guiderius and Arviragus " : and
we learn from chapter xix that it was Guiderius who first refused to pay the
Roman tribute contracted by Cassibellane.
Prefatory Notes.
The following passages will shew that Shakespeare
(III, i) gives to Cassibellane a curious incident which
happened to his brother Nenius; and to Cymbeline
some of the events told of Cassibellane.
The same [British] historic also maketh mention of one
Belinus [a son of Malmucius] that was generall of Cassibellanes
armie, and likewise of Nenius brother to Cassibellane, who in
fight happened to get Cesar's sword fastened in his shield by
a blow which Cesar stroke at him. Androgeus also and
Tenancius were at the battell in aid of Cassibellane. Chap. xiii.
Thus according to that which Cesar himselfe and other
authentike authors have written, was Britaine made tribunarie
to the Romans by the conduct of the same Cesar. But our
histories farre differ from this, affirming that Cesar comming
the second time, was by the Britains with valiencie and martiall
prowesse beaten and repelled, as he was at the first, and
speciallie by meanes that Cassibellane had pight in the
Thames great piles of trees piked with yron, through which his
ships being entred the river, were perished and lost. And after
his comming a land, he was vanquished in battell, and con-
strained to flee into Gallia with those ships that remained. For
joy of this second victorie (saith Galfrid) Cassibellane made a
great feast at London, and there did sacrifice to the gods.
Chap. xvi.
There is also in the same scene of the play an
allusion to Mulmucius, which was derived from the
heading of chapter i of the same book.
Of Mulmucius, the first king of Britaine, who was crowned
with a golden crowne, his laws, his foundations, with other his
acts and deeds.
Prefatory Notes. ix
In this chapter we learn that
Mulmucius, the sonne of Cloten, got the upper hand of
the other dukes or rulers.
But Shakespeare's obligations to Holinshed do not
end with " the historic of England." The description
which preludes Posthumus' account of the battle, " The
king himself, of his wings destitute," &c., and his sub-
sequent narrative of the arrest of the Briton-flight (v, iii),
are taken from the third part, viz., " The historic of
Scotland," p, 155, where we read a description of a stal-
wart husbandman named Haie, who "beholding the king
with the most part of the nobles, fighting with great
valiancic in the middle ward, iiow destitute of the wings"
&c. ; and further on, we read —
" There was neere to the place of the battell, a long lane fcnsed
on the sides with ditches and walles made of turfe, through the
which the Scots which fled were beaten downe by the cnimies
on heapes. Here Haie with his sonnes, supposing they might
best staie the fight, placed themselves overthwart the lane, beat
them backe whom they met fleeing, and spared 7ieithcr friend
nor fo : but doivne they went all such as came within their reach,
wherewith diverse hardie personages cried unto their fellowes to
returne backe into the battell," &c.
from which Shakespeare took the incident described by
Lucius (v, ii) :
For friends kill friends, and the disorder's such
As war were hoodwink'd.
b
Prefatory Notes.
William Sidney Walker {Crit. Exam., iii, 331 — 332)
quotes the following passage from Sidney's Arcadia,
b. ii, 178, as a remarkable suggestion of the characters
and mutual relations of Cymbeline and his Queen ; who,
after all, are but echoes of Macbeth and Gruach.
" And therefore I shall need the less to make you know
what kind of woman she was ; but this only, that first with the
reins of affection, and after wth the very use of directing, she
had made herself so absolute a master of her husband's mind,
that awhile he would not, and after, he could not tell how to
govern without being governed by her : but finding an ease in
not understanding, let loose his thoughts wholly to pleasure,
entrusting to her the entire conduct of all his royal affairs. A
thing that may luckily fall out to him that hath the blessing to
match with some heroical-minded lady. But in him it was
neither guided by wisdom, nor followed by fortune, but therein
was slipt insensibly into such an estate, that he lived at her
undiscreet discretion : all his subjects having by some years
learned, so to hope for good, and fear of harm, only from her,
that it should have needed a stronger virtue than his, to have
unwound so deeply an entered vice. So that, either not striving
because he was contented, or contented because he would not
strive, he scarcely knew what was done in his own chamber, but
as it pleased her instruments to frame the relation."
In the Arcadia, too, the name of Leonatus occurs.
The date at which this play was written is still
unsettled. Coleridge and Tieck judged it to be a juvenile
performance. Malone first assigned it to the year 1605,
but afterwards to 1609. Mr. Fleay at first thought that
it was begun in 1606, and completed between 1607 ^i^d
Prefatory Notes. xi
1608. However, he now assigns the greater part
to 1 610. Mr. Stokes gives the date 1609 — 16 10. But
all these determinations are independent of the facts
which the comparison of this play with Macbeth has
brought under my notice during the preparation of
materials for this edition. The first note on II, ii (p. 58),
was written, when I first perceived that the entire play
could not have been composed so late as 16 10. The
conclusion I have arrived at is, that II, ii, III, i, and
V, ii — V, were written as early as 1606 — 7, and the play
completed in 1609 — 10 ; so that I agree, on the whole,
with Mr. Fleay's first view, with an extension of the
interval he supposed to have elapsed between the two
compositions.
The earliest record of a performance of Cynibclme
is in Simon Forman's Diary, 1610— 1611 (Ashmolean :
208, Bodleian Library). Under 161 1, the diarist makes
the entry — " Of Chnbalin King of Englatid ;'' and as the
entries before and after specify the place of representa-
tion, " at the glob," it is to be inferred that, in referring
to Cymbeline^ he only omitted the name of that theatre,
because he could not remember the exact date of the
performance. Between 161 1 and 1633 we have no
mention of the acting of this play. Sir Henry Herbert,
in his Office -Book 162^ — 1638, pp. 233,234 (Malone's
Var. Ed., vol. iii), gives this entry : " On Wensday
night the first of January 1633, Cynibeline was acted at
xii Prefatory Notes.
Court of the King's players. Well Hkte by the King."
(See Shakespeare's Centurie of Pray se, 2nd ed., 97 & 157.)
The play is known to us only from the first collective
edition of Shakespeare's " Comedies, Histories, and
Tragedies," put forth in 1623, commonly called 'The
First Folio.' It is the only play in that volume which is
certainly misplaced ; for according to the accepted classi-
fication of the time, it is a Comedy ; whereas it appears
there as the last of the Tragedies. Some of the editors of
the last and of the current century made the mistake
of removing Macbeth from the Tragedies, where it is
absolutely in its place, and printing it among the
Histories ; but with strange inconsistency they left
Cymhcline among the Tragedies, which might have been
better classed with either of the other divisions. Its
proper place is in juxta-position to TJie Winter's Tale,
with which it has a general and particular resemblance.*
" In general handling," writes Dr. Furnivall (Trans.
N. Sh. Soc, 1874, I, 18), " Cynibeline is closer to The
* It is perhaps worth noting, that Cymbeliiie stands in somewhat the
same relation to Alacbdh, as The Winter's Tale does to Othello : as
Leontes, the father of Perdita, is an echo of the childless Moor, so Cymbeline,
the father of Imogen, and his Queen, the mother of Cloten, are echoes of
Macbeth and the childless Gruach : while Hermione and Imogen are the
two absolutely original and perfect matrons in all Shakespeare. After all,
Perdita (the modern Nausicaa, of the true simplicity of shamefastness,
knowing no shame) stands out as the pearl among Shakespeare's girls,
insomuch that Miranda and Marina pale before her.
Prefatory Notes. xiii
Winter's Tale than any other play. Like that, it treats
of the father's breaking of family ties by his own
injustice, and then rejoining them, and points (in my
belief) to Shakespeare's renewed family life at Stratford
after he had left London, and to the contrast he must
have felt between the country and the court."
The place of Cymbeline in the Folio suggests that it
was included late, and as an afterthought. It was
probably a small weight in its favour that decided the
editors to accept it, while they rejected Pericles. This
view is confirmed by speeches in the play, which carry
to my mind the conviction of their being mere rough
drafts : little more, in fact, than notes for speeches to be
written hereafter. I refer in particular to I, vii (pp. 39,40),
II, i (p. 57), III, iv (pp. 105,106), & vi (pp. 120,121),
IV, ii (p. 144), and V, v passim. Francois Victor Hugo
thought he could see in the Hamlets of 1603 & 1604
the process of composition, as we see a full-bodied
poem grow out of the poet's rough sketch, and was,
as it were, empowered " de penetrer jusqu'au fond la
pensee du poete, et de surprendre les secrets du genie
en travail." That was a very gross illusion ; but in
Cymbeline (if ever), and in that play only of the entire
canon, we may trace in those rough-cast notes the out-
lines of speeches, which, strange to say, Shakespeare
did not prevail upon himself to realize.
The project of such an edition of Cymbeline as the
Prefatory Notes.
present was cursorily sketched in Shakespeare, the Man
and the Book, vol. ii, pp. 9 & 17,18 ; but in executing it
several modifications were found necessary ; particularly,
the proposals as to the numbering of the lines, and the
paraphrase of the text, which is here restricted to the few
really difficult passages, not readily amenable to the
more usual modes of exposition.
The text was set up from Booth's reproduction of Fj,
verified by occasional reference to the original, the
spelling being for the most part modernized — the few
exceptions being made for some special reason. The
text of Fi is usually followed ; and, in the absence of any
indication to the contrary, the reading adopted is always
that of Fi. Every deviation is indicated in the notes
above the dividing line, save in type, spelling, punctua-
tion, and verse ; though even in such matters, in places
where the sense is affected by one or other of these
incidents, the peculiarity of Fj is recorded. Every reading
that is not derived from F^ is assigned to its authority
or author ; and in every such case the reading of F^ is
given also : so that substantially F^ is always represented
either in the text, or in the notes. Many conjectural
readings, not advanced to the text, are also recorded, as
being, in the editor's judgment, deserving of consideration.
Some of these are his own, of which twelve emendations
stand in the text, and rather more are recorded among
the selected readings.
Prefatory Notes. xv
By presenting both the readings and the annotations,
whether explanatory or critical, at the foot of the page,
separated by a dividing-line, this edition, though possibly
disabled for service as a class book, is (what it is in-
tended to be) a student's and scholar's edition. The
inconvenience (a sacrifice to economy) which students
have suffered through the postponement of all notes
to the end of the play (as in the Clarendon Press and
Friendly Editions) is thus obviated.* Moreover, the
text is not here encumbered with impertinent explana-
tions. Though "upon a desperate bed" does mean "sick
with a desperate illness," and " wenchlike " does mean
"womanish," the information is wholly unnecessary to
anyone who knows the English language ; but "pregnant"
does not mean ^^ full of probability," or of any other
possible quality, nor does " at utterance " mean " to the
uttermost." The verse is usually left to " shuffle for
itself" — though in a few cases an attempt at regulation
and redistribution has been made. To have attempted
more would have entailed indefinite delay, and ultimate
disappointment ; for the speculations which divide Pro-
fessor Elze, Dr. Furnivall, Mr. Fleay, and Mr. Watkiss
Lloyd, are not likely to receive a settlement before the
Greek Calends.
* The penalty exacted for having pursued this course is the accumula-
tion of the " Supplementary Annotations," on pp. 209 — 13.
XVI
Prefatory Notes.
This Edition owes most to Reed's of 1813, and the
Cambridge of 1866 ; but many other editions, as well as
a crowd of commentaries, have been consulted and used
as the occasion arose ; and many Elizabethan and
Jacobean works have been ransacked for corroborative
or illustrative passages.
ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE NOTES TO
THIS EDITION.
A. IV. All's Well that Ends Well.
A. &^ C Antony and Cleopatra.
A. V. A As You Like it.
C. of E Comedy of Errors.
C. Coriolanus.
H. Hamlet, Prince of Denmark.
K. E. Ill . . . King Edward the Third.
1, 2 A". 11. 4 . . . The First, or Second Part of King Henry the
Fourth.
A'. //. $ .... King Henry the Fifth.
\,2,z K. H.b . . The First, Second, or Third Part of King Henry
the Sixth.
K. H.% .... King Henry the Eighth.
J. C. Julius Ccesar.
K.J. King John.
K. L King Lear.
L. C. A Lover's Complaint.
L. L. L Love's Labours Lost.
M. Macbeth.
M. for M. .... Measure for Measure.
M. of V. . . . . The Merchant of Venice.
M. VV. The Merry Wives of Windsor.
M. N. D A Midsummer Night's Dream.
M. A Much Ado about Nothing.
O Othello.
P. P. The Passionate Pilgrim.
P. Pericles, Prince of Tyre.
c
xviii Abbreviations.
K. R. 2 .... King Richard the Second.
K. R. 1 .... King Richard the Third.
R. or J. .... Romeo and Juliet.
R. of L., R. L., ox L. The Rape of Lucrece.
T. of S. .... The Taming of the Shrew.
T. The Tempest.
T. of A Timon of Athens.
T. A Titus Andronicus.
T. cr' C Troihis and Cressida.
T. A^. Twelfth Night, or What You Will.
T. G. V. . . . . The Two Gentlemen of Verona.
T. N. K. . . . . The Two Noble Kinsmen.
V. &" A Venus and Adonis.
IV. T. The Winter's Tale.
Fi The First Folio Edition, 1623.
Fj The Second Folio Edition, 1632.
F3 The Third Folio Edition, 1664.
F4 The Fourth Folio Edition, 1685.
A. V. of N. T. . . The Authorised Version of the New Testament.
*^j* Line-references, except for Cymbeline, are as corrected, to the
Globe Edition of Shakespeare.
In corrections, pp. xix,xx.
a Annotation.
c Collation (of selected readings).
t Text.
;^^^»^
*,* BEFORE USING THIS EDITION, THE READER IS
REQUESTED TO MAKE THE FOLLOWING CORRECTIONS.
Line of Text (t)
Collation (c)
or
Page. Annotation (a) Correction.
vi 2 from foot insert in a collection before entitled,
viii 12 for tribunaries read tributaries
2 7 from foot a for 42 read 44
,, 6 from foot a for 387 & 401 read 384 & 397
,, last c dele Steevens conj.
,, last a dele after a proposal of Steevens
(The fact is, Steevens' independent proposal
was published 22 years after Hanmer's Edition. )
3 4 0! for 48,49 read 50,51
,, 6 a for 12 — 15 read 13 — 16
4 3 a for 19 read 16
6 6 a for 77—79 read 86—88
10 6 a for 4 read ,105 and for 216 — 218 read 215 — 217
16 \2 t for on read upon
,, 6 a for 16 read 17
,, 9 a for 21 read 23
,, penult, a for France read Burgundy
18 2 c after Ed. conj., add either Staunton conj. the Gould
conj.
20 I a for 38,39 read 47,48
22 last t dele own
,, 17 a for 2 read 3
23 2 a for V read IV
24 6 a for words read word
29 \i t for confidence read offence
30 II t dele that before you
32 8 / for base read most
,, c for Steevens read Theobald
,, 2 from foot a for his read this
XX Correctiotis.
Page.
Line of Text (i)
Collation (c)
or
Annotation (a)
46
2 t
>>
2 C
47
2 C
>>
48
3 ^
2&3f
50
52
61
2 C
last «
3 from foot t
jj
last ^
99
63
64
68
c
I a
c
I a
73
76
last a
>>
3«
last a
77
85
87
penult, a
I a
8 /
»>
>>
u /
last a
92
I f
95
98
14 a
10,11 ^
100
14 ^
last i
no
5 «
112
last /
118
1 a
121
9 a
122
c
123
3 «
124
137
I f
last a
Correction.
fop bondage ! read bondage !"
fop heavens pead heaven's
fop 96 pead 95
fop 97 pead 96
fop 7 pead 6, and fop 8 pead 7
aftep Walker add conj.
fop 21 pead 23
fop bear pead bare
fop time. [Exit, pead time ! [Exit, into tnmk.
add 32 sense Y -^ selfe Gould conj.
fop 116 pead 113— 115.
add 29 amend F„ ame d F^.
fop 98,99 pead 95,96
insept 34, befope 35
add on't was not S. Walker conj.
fop 53 pead 49 and for 54 pead 50
fop Posthumus pead lachimo
fop depend pead depender
fop 51,52 (Globe) pead 351,352
fop Britains pead Britons
insePt or befope longer
aftep subs, add sing
fop 76 pead 77
fop "him" pead the second "him"
pemove , fpom aftep bow and place it after meanly
(Staunton's correction)
fop tricks pead trick
dele an
foP seventeenth pead sixteenth
fop you read you !
fop 133 pead 134
fop or "Take, pead and "Take
add 14 He Rowe 2 Here Fj.
add, after absurd, as well as untrue.
dele , aftep Groome
for A. Y. pead A. Y. L.
Corrections. xxi
Line of Text (t)
Collation (c)
or
Page. j^Vn notation (a) Correction.
139 c fop 151 /, Fi read 162 /Fj.
140 c add 175 TcWit/tv- Fj wotiderfulYo^&.
142 8 t for thy read the
,, 10 / for in. read in?
„ c add 201 one Rowe 2 the one Fj.
,, c add 203 //[f Eccles conj. thyY-^.
143 last a insert IV, before ii
146 3 from foot / ) -. .
^ -^ hfor your read our
181 10 / )
150 \T t for to't read 't
,, c add 349 si lines F^ j?>>;j Gould conj.
151 la add sup)-a
165 3 from foot t for e'er read ere
168 5 from foot t for Gaoler read Gaolers
,, last t for I am read am I
,, c add 91 legge F, /a,^ Daniel conj.
173 2 c fov deserv\i ¥ I vea,d d serv'd F i.
177 7 from foot / for .So I read So, if I
178 6 from foot / for for read or
179 I / for Why, what read What
188 la for him read you
189 last a for 3rd read 2nd
190 18 a for statue read stature
1 94 2 e for came i\ read comes Fj.
200 / dele [To Belarius.
Transpose readings at pp. 68, c ; 69, c ; 82, 3 c ; 108, 2 c% 154, 2 <-.
*»* Some errors in numerals referring to passages infra, were almost
inevitable, where the text referred to was not already in type.
PERSONS REPRESENTED.
Cymbeline, king of Britain.
Cloten, son to the Queen by a deceased husband.
PosTHUMUS Leonatus, husband to Imogen.
Belarius, a banished lord, passing under the name of Morgan.
Guiderius, ^ Sons to Cymbeline by a former wife, passing under the names
Arviragus, f of PoLYDORE and Cadwal, putative sons to Morgan.
Philario, friend to Posthumus, "k ^ ,.
Y Italians.
Iachimo, friend to Philario, /
Caius Lucius, general of the Roman forces.
Pisanio, attendant to Posthumus.
Cornelius, a physician.
A Roman Captain.
Two British Captains.
A Frenchman, friend to Philario.
\o{ Cymbeline's Court.
Two Gentlemen J
Gaolers.
Queen, wife to Cymbeline.
Imogen, daughter to Cymbeline by a former wife, at one time passing under
the name of Fidele, a page.
Helen, attendant to Imogen.
Lords, Ladies, Roman Senators, Tribunes, a Soothsayer, Musicians,
Apparitions, &c.
Scene : Britain and Rome.
^:^mm^
CYMBELINE.
ACT I.
SCENE i.
Enter tivo Gentlemen.
\st Gent. You do not meet a man but frowns. Our bloods
No more obey the heavens than our courtiers
Still seem as does the king's.
3 king's = kings Fj.
I — 3. The phrase is elliptical, and the text, though not defective, has
therefore been suspected. " Our bloods" «S:c. , = our bloods (or dispositions)
are not more "servile to all the skyey influences" (M. for AT., Ill, i) than
our courtiers, in their feigned looks, are to the king's blood. It is a converted
simile. The weather governs our dispositions ; the king's disposition, through
his looks, &c., governs our courtiers' looks; the former dependency is not
more constant than the latter. " Still seem"= ever put on an appearance.
Cf. C. of E., II, ii, 30 — 34, where Antipholus of S. thus directs his servant :
When the sun shines let foolish gnats make sport,
But creep in crannies when he hides his beams.
If you will jest with me, ktunv my aspect,
And fashion your demeanour to my looks.
Or I will beat this method in your sconce.
The following passages from Greene's Mcnaphoii , 1589, pp. 23,24 (Arber),
well illustrate this: though the feigning is here the other way, viz., assuming
cheerful looks, without the corresponding cheerfulness. "The King thus
smoothing the heate of his cares, rested a melancholy man in his Courts ;
hiding under his head the double-faced figure oi Jamis, as well to cleare the
skies of other men's conceiptes with smiles, as to furnish out his owne dumps
2 Cymbeline. I, i.
2nd Gent. But what's the matter?
\st Gent. His daughter, and the heir of 's kingdom, whom
He purpos'd to his wife's sole son, a widow
That late he married, hath preferr'd herself
Unto a poor but worthy gentleman.
She's wedded : her husband banish'd : she imprison'd :
All is outward sorrow; though I think the king
Be touch'd at very heart.
6 preferr'd Y.A. conj. referr'dY-^.
8 She's wedded Fj | She's wed Steevens conj.
9 All is F, I All's Steevens conj. Hanmer.
with thoughts. But as other beasts levell their lookes at the countenance of
the Lion, and birdes make wing as the Eagle flyes: so Hegis ad arbitriuni
totus componitur orbis: the people were measured by the minde of the
sovereigne, and what stormes soever they smoothed in private conceipt, yet
they made haye, and cried holiday in outward appearance. * * * ^Vhen
thou \Me>iaphon'\ seest the heavens frowne, thou thinkest on thy faults, and a
cleere skie putteth thee in minde of grace;" &c. Steevens quotes from Never
too late, 1590, of the same author, "if the King smiled, every one in court
was in jollitie; if he frowned, their plumes fell like peacock's feathers, so
that their outward presence depended on his inward passions." See also
a passage in Chapman's Byron's Tragedie, IV, i, quoted in Shakespeare
Her/nenetitics, 1875, P- 147> i^i illustration of a passage in 31. for AL, and by
Hudson (ed. 1881).
6. " Preferr'd " would in this passage mean "commended " or "recom-
mended." Imogen had not " referr'd herself" to Posthumus, in the only
sense "referr'd " can well have (as to which, cf M.forM., Ill, ii — the Duke's
penultimate speech), but "preferr'd" or commended herself to the man she
would marry. Cf. the same verb, in nearly the same sense, in II, iii, 42, and
IV, ii, 387 & 401. Cf also T. of A., Ill, v, 32—35 :
make his wrongs his outsides ;
To wear them like his raiment, carelessly :
And ne'er prefer his injuries to his heart,
To bring it into danger.
8,9. Hanmer's arrangement after a proposal of Steevens.
I, i. Cynibcline. 3
27id Ge?it. None but the king ?
ist Gent. He that hath lost her too : so is the queen,
That most desir'd the match. But not a courtier,
Although they wear their faces to the bent
Of the king's looks, hath a heart that is not
Glad at the thing they scowl at.
2nd Gent. And why so ?
ist Gent. He that hath miss'd the princess is a thing
Too bad for bad report : and he that hath her,
(I mean, that married her, alack, good man !
And therefore banish'd), is a creature such
As, to seek through the regions of the earth
For one his like, there would be something failing
In him that should compare. I do not think
So fair an outward, and such stuff within,
Endows a man but he.
2nd Gent. You speak him far.
14 hath .... nol Fj bttt hath .... not Tope i. Pope 2 omits not.
12 — 15. These lines may be compared to lago's description of these
Who trimm'd in forms and visages of duty,
Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves.
a, I, i, 48,49.
19 — 22. A similar, but more excessive, strain of commendation is applied
to Hermione in W. T., v, i, 12 — 15:
If one by one you wedded all the world,
Or from the all that are took something good
To make a perfect woman, she you kill'd
Would be unparallel'd.
It should be observed that "In him that should compare" means, in the
case of him who should be selected to stand the comparison.
4 Cynibeline. I, i.
\st Gent. I do extend him, sir, within himself;
Crush him together, rather than unfold
His measure duly.
2nd Gent. What's his name, and birth ?
\st Gent. I cannot delve him to the root: his father
Was call'd Sicilius, who did win his honour
Against the Romans, with Cassibelan,
But had his titles by Tenantius, whom
He serv'd with glory and admir'd success;
So gain'd the sur-addition, Leonatus;
And had, besides this gentleman in question,
Two other sons, who, in the wars o' th' time,
Died with their swords in hand : for which their father,
29 JF/« Jervis conj. ioyneY-^.
25,26. The second speaker says, you praise him out of measure: to
which the first replies, I unfold at large his virtues, but within the measure
of himself. To extend is often used in this sense. Cf. I, v, 19 infra, and
W. T., IV, i (Camillo's penult, speech), "The report of her is extended
more than can be thought." Hack the value (M. A., IV, i, 222) is used
in the same sense : rack = stretch (as on the rack) or extend to the full.
29. The old text, ioyne, cannot be right, on account of the opposed
clause — '■'■But had his titles," &c. Cf. A. W., Ill, ii (the Countess' penult.
speech) : his sword can never win
The honour that he loses.
Also II, iv, 53 infra : ^ut I now
Profess myself the winner of her honour.
And The Travailes of Three English Brothers, John Day, 1607 (Bullen), p. 1 1 :
and that hardens valour,
When he that wins the honour wins the spoil.
Win is a fitter word for honour got by military exploit, than gain, another
conjecture of Jervis, adopted by several American editors. Earn (recorded
in the Camb. ed.) stands self-condemned on the ground of cacophony.
I, i. Cynibeline. 5
Then old and fond of issue, took such sorrow
That he quit being ; and his gentle lady
Big of this gentleman, our theme, deceas'd
As he was born. The king he takes the babe 40
To his protection, calls him Posthumus Leonatus,
Breeds him, and makes him of his bed-chamber,
Puts to him all the learnings that his time
Could make him the receiver of, which he took,
As we do air, fast as 'twas minister'd, and
43 to him Fj him to Reed.
44 receiver of , -ivhich Fj, receiver, ofiohich Ed. conj.
43. No other certain instance of this use of the verb "put to" is
adducible from Shakespeare. In the passage Schmidt couples with this
(C, III, iii, 391 — 393), " put" seems to have the meaning of suggest.
I see, sir, you are eaten up wilh passion :
I do repent me that I put it to you.
You would be satisfied?
But the folio text is allowed to stand, because of the following words:
"could make him the receiver of;" and in view of that "put to" may
here mean, as in T. of A., IV, iii, 271, "put into." For confimiation,
of. V, V, 336 — 339 (Belarius' penult, speech) :
These gentle princes —
For such and so they are — these twenty years
Have I train'd up : those arts they have as I
Could put into them.
"His time," as we now say, his years, meaning, his youth. Cf. M. of V.,
' ' ""■ but my chief care
Is to come fairly oflf from the great debts
Wherein tny time, something too prodigal,
Hath left me gaged.
44. The conjectural reading above recorded, which restores the rhythm
of the verse, is sustained by other passages, e. g., IV. 71, II, i, 93 :
That vulgars give bold'st titles.
6 Cymbeline. I, i.
In's spring became a harvest : liv'd in court,
(Which rare it is to do) most prais'd, most lov'd :
A sample to the youngest: to th' more mature,
A glass that feated them : and to the graver,
A child that guided dotards : to his mistress, 50
For whom he now is banish'd, — her own price
Proclaims how she esteem'd him : and his virtue
By her election may be truly read,
What kind of man he is.
27id Gefit. I honour him,
Even out of your report. But pray you tell me,
Is she sole child to th' king?
1st Gent. His only child.
He had two sons (if this be worth your hearing,
Mark it): the eldest of them at three years old,
I' th' swathing-clothes the other, from their nursery
Were stol'n, and to this hour no guess in knowledge 60
46. This may be contrasted with Cleopatra's description of Antony (with
Theobald's triumphant emendation) :
For his bounty,
There was no winter in't ; an autumn 'twas
That grew the more by reaping.
A. &^ C, V, ii, 77—79.
49. " Feated " is just fashio7ied, forvicd. Cf. ZT., Ill, i (Ophelia's last
speech). The glass of fashion and the mould of form.
The word has been found in Palsgrave, 1530; and Steevens aptly quotes
2 K. H. 4, IV, iii, 21 : „ • j j .i, 1
^' ' ' He was indeed the glass
Wherein the noble youths did dress themselves.
58,59. — Cf. Ill, iii, loi infra:
At three and two years old I stole these babes.
60. That is, "no guess" resulting " in knowledge."
I, i & ii. Cymbeline. y
Which way they went.
2Tid Gent. How long is this ago ?
ist Gent. Some twenty years.
2Jid Gent. That a king's children should be so convey'd,
So slackly guarded, and the search so slow
That could not trace them !
ist Gent. Howsoe'er 'tis strange,
Or that the negligence may well be laugh'd at,
Yet is it true, sir.
2nd Getit. I do well believe you.
\st Gent. We must forbear : here comes the gentleman,
The queen and princess.
\E,xeunt.
SCENE ii.
Enter the Queen, Posthumus, and Imogen.
Queen. No : be assur'd you shall not find me, daughter,
After the slander of most step-mothers,
Evil-ey'd unto you. You 're my prisoner, but
Your gaoler shall deliver you the keys
That lock up your restraint. For you, Posthumus,
So soon as I can win th' offended king,
I will be known your advocate: marry, yet
63. "Conveyed" means here carried off by stealth, decoyed or kidnapped.
2. According to the slanderous repute of most step-mothers. Cf. I, vii, i
infra, and T. &f C, III, ii (Cressida's protestation):
* as false * as stepdame to her son.
8 Cymbeline. I, ii.
The fire of rage is in him, and 'twere good
You lean'd unto his sentence with what patience
Your wisdom may inform you.
Post. 'Please your highness,
I will from hence to-day.
Queen, You know the peril :
I'll fetch a turn about the garden, pitying
The pangs of barr'd affections, though the king
Hath charg'd you should not speak together. \Exit,
Imo. O
Dissembling courtesy ! How fine this tyrant
Can tickle where she wounds ! My dearest husband,
I something fear my father's wrath, but nothing
(Always reserv'd my holy duty) what
His rage can do on me. You must be gone,
And I shall here abide the hourly shot
Of angry eyes : not comforted to live,
But that there is this jewel in the world,
That I may see again.
Post. My queen ! my mistress !
O lady, weep no more, lest I give cause
To be suspected of more tenderness
Than doth become a man. I will remain
The loyal'st husband that did e'er plight troth.
9. You should bend in submission to the sentence. So we now say in
our Law Reports, "he bowed to the ruling of the Court."
13. Aflections thwarted, or debarred from their gratification.
I, ii. Cymbeline. g
My residence in Rome, at one Philario's,
Who to my father was a friend, to me
Known but by letter; thither write, my queen, ^o
And with mine eyes I '11 drink the words you send,
Though ink be made of gall.
Re-enter Queen.
Queen. Be brief, I pray you :
If the king come, I shall incur I know not
How much of his displeasure; [AsiWe] yet I'll move him
To walk this way : I never do him wrong.
But he does buy my injuries to be friends:
Pays dear for my offences. [£xif.
Post. Should we be taking leave
As long a term as yet we have to live.
The loathness to depart would grow. Adieu !
Lno. Nay, stay a little : 40
Were you but riding forth to air yourself,
Such parting were too petty. Look here, love,
This diamond was my mother's; take it, heart,
But keep it till you woo another wife.
When Imogen is dead.
32. "Ink" = the ink. In Shakespeare and writers of his time the
article is often understood.
36. "To be friends" = in order that we may be friends again.
The queen (who is a weak echo of Lady Macbeth) takes advantage of
Cymbeline's dependence upon her ; and, contrary to the common usage, the
injured party here is expected to condone the injuries he has received.
44. " But" = only.
C
lo Cymbeline. I, ii.
Post. How, how? Another?
You gentle gods, give me but this I have,
And sear up my embracements from a next
With bonds of death. Remain, remain thou here, \Puts on ring.
While sense can keep it on ! And sweetest, fairest,
As I my poor self did exchange for you, 50
To your so infinite loss; so in our trifles
I still win of you. For my sake wear this :
It is a manacle of love : I '11 place it
Upon this fairest prisoner. \Puts the bracelet ofi her arm.
Imo. O the gods !
When shall we see again ?
Enter Cymbeline a7id Lords.
Post. Alack, the king !
49 it on Fj it own = its 0^.011 Grant White conj.
47. Meaning, prevent my embracements with bonds of death, i.e.,
the sear-cloths or cerements in which the body is swathed. Cf. T. of A.,
IV, iii, 177—188 : Common mother, &c.,
Ettsear thy fertile and conceptious womb !
49. This change of person, from thoic to it, is countenanced by similar
changes in other passages of this play, \\z., Ill, iii, 103,4, IV, ii, 216 — 218,
and V, i, 2 — 4.
50,51. Posthumus says, in effect, you have given me yourself — your
all — which is infinitely more precious than what I gave you in exchange
(myself), so that you have suffered infinite loss. Cf. V, iv, 22,23 '•
For Imogen's dear life take mine ; and though
'Tis not so dear, yet 'tis a life.
55. Cf. A'. H. 8, I, i, 2 :
How have you done
Since last lue saw in France ?
Cf. " We have known together in Orleans," I, v infra.
I, ii. Cymbeline. 1 1
Cytn. Thou basest thing, avoid ! hence, from my sight !
If after this command thou fraught the court
With thy unworthiness, thou diest. Away !
Thou'rt poison to my blood.
Post. The gods protect you.
And bless the good remainders of the court ! 6°
I am gone. {Exit.
Into. There cannot be a pinch in death
More sharp than this is.
Cym. O disloyal thing,
That shouldst repair my youth, thou heap'st
A year's age on me.
Imo. I beseech you, sir,
Harm not yourself with your vexation : I
Am senseless of your wrath ; a touch more rare
63,64 heafst A yeares age on Fj heapest years Of age upon Ed. conj.
57. " Fraught" = freight, v. a., meaning here, to charge or burden,
Posthumus, who has hitherto been a dependant at court, is now forbidden to
be a hanger-on there. This verb also occurs in T., I, ii, 13.
61,62. Cf. K. H. 8, V, i, 68,69 :
her sufferance made
Almost each pang a death.
63,64. "Thou heap'st a year's age on me." The expression is well
illustrated by a remark in one of General Gordon's letters (Hake's Story of
Chinese Gordon. 1884, P. 302). " It is, indeed, most painful to be in such
a position ; it takes a year's work out of me. "
66. "Senseless" = insensible. Cf. T. of A., II, ii, 1 :
so senseless of expense.
66. "A touch more rare" = a pang more exquisite.
12
Cymbeline. I, ii.
Subdues all pangs, all fears.
Cym. Past grace ? Obedience ?
lino. Past hope, and in despair : that way past grace.
Cym. That mightst have had the sole son of my queen !
lino. O blessed, that I might not ! I chose an eagle, 70
And did avoid a puttock.
Cym. Thou took'st a beggar : wouldst have made my throne
A seat for baseness.
Imo. No; I rather added
A lustre to it.
Cym. O thou vile one !
Imo. Sir,
It is your fault that I have lov'd Posthumus.
You bred him as my playfellow, and he is
A man worth any woman : over-buys me
Almost the sum he pays.
66,67. Cf. IV, ii, 244 infra:
Great griefs, I see, med'cine the less,
and K. Z., Ill, iv, 8 — 14:
But where the greater malady is fi.x'd,
The lesser is scarce felt.
* * * The tempest in my mind
Doth from my senses take all feeling else.
Save what beats there.
Also O., I, iii, 53 — 56, and Sotinet 90.
70,71. Cf. A', i?. 3, I, i, 132,133:
More pity that the eagle should be mew'd.
While kites and buzzards prey at liberty.
"A puttock," if not a kite or a buzzard, was, like those, of no use in falconrj'.
77,78. Imogen adopts her husband's metaphor in lines 50,51, but, in
turning it against herself, increases the extravagance of the self-depreciation.
She says in effect, that in marrying her, Posthumus gets almost nothing in
return for what he gives, his worth being so much greater than hers.
I, ii. Cymbeline. 13
Cytn. What ? art thou mad ?
Imo. Almost, sir, heaven restore me ! Would I were
A neat-herd's daughter, and my Leonatus 80
Our neighbour shepherd's son !
Re-enter Queen.
Cym. Thou foolish thing ! \To Imogen.
They were again together : you have done
Not after our command. Away with her.
And pen her up.
Queen. Beseech your patience : peace,
Dear lady daughter, peace. Sweet sovereign,
Leave us to ourselves, and make yourself some comfort
Out of your best advice.
Cym. Nay, let her languish
A drop of blood a day, and being aged
Die of this folly! [Exit.
Enter Pisanio.
Queen. Fie, you must give way :
Here is your servant. How now, sir ? AVhat news ? 90
Pisa. My lord your son drew on my master.
Queen. Ha !
No harm, I trust, is done ?
Pisa. There might have been,
87,88. Cf. V, V, 52 infra:
A mortal mineral
^Vhich, being took, should by the minute feed
On life, and lingering by inches waste you.
and 0., V, ii, 154 :
If he say so, may his pernicious soul
Rot half a grain a day !
14 Cymbelme. I, ii.
But that my master rather play'd than fought,
And had no help of anger : they were parted
By gentlemen at hand.
Queen. I am very glad on't.
Imo. Your son's my father's friend; he takes his part
To draw upon an exile. O brave sir !
I would they were in Afric both together:
Myself by with a needle, that I might prick
The goer-back ! Why came you from your master ?
Pisa. On his command. He would not suffer me
To bring him to the haven : left these notes
Of what commands I should be subject to.
When 't pleas'd you to employ me.
Queen. This hath been
Your faithful servant : I dare lay mine honour
He will remain so.
Pisa. I humbly thank your highness.
Queen. 'Pray walk awhile.
Imo. About some half-hour hence, [ To Pisanio.
I pray you speak with me; you shall at least
Go see my lord aboard. For this time leave me. \Exeunt.
io8 //ra;)/ Capell PrayY^.
94. "Help of anger" is the stimulus of anger. Posthumus was not
animated with anger to injure his assailant. Take the following in illus-
tration : "A slight flesh-wound in the side at once punished, and warned
him of, his inadvertence ; when, turning his whole thoughts on the business
in which he was engaged, and animated with anger against his impertinent
intruder the rencontre speedily began to assume another face," and Peveril
ran him through the body. — Peveril of the Peak, chap. 32.
107—109. Capell's re-arrangement of the broken lines in Fj.
I, iii. Cymbeline. 15
SCENE iii.
Enter Cloten atid two Lords.
\st Lord. Sir, I would advise you to shift a shirt; the violence
of action hath made you reek as a sacrifice. Where air comes
out, air comes in ; there's none abroad so unwholesome as that
you vent.
Clot. If my shirt were bloody, then to shift it. Have I
hurt him ?
2iid Lord. \Aside\ No, faith ; not so much as his patience.
15/ Lord. Hurt him ? His body's a passable carcase if he
be not hurt. It is a throughfare for steel if it be not hurt.
3 unwholesome Ed. conj. wholesome Y ^.
I, iii. This scene is introduced to show up Cloten in a character
which — to judge of his subsequent conduct — he hardly deserves, that of a
conceited coward. The first Lord flatters him too grossly for human
credulity, and the second Lord, by "asides," lampoons him, for the benefit
of the groundlings. The allusions are obscure, and the quibbles poor. It
would be a relief to know that Shakespeare was not responsible for either
this scene, or the first in Act II. Both, however, may be omitted, without
loss, in reading this play.
2 — 4. The first Lord's advice is to change for the better ; and therefore
he is bound to say "there's none — /. e., no air — abroad so ?/« wholesome," &c.
This kind of emendation has to be resorted to in several passages of the
prose scenes of this play, in order to make sense of them.
5. " Then to shift it " = then only would there be any need to shift it :
viz., in the event of his having been wounded.
8. Passable = penetrable, without rupture, as a fluid. Cf. Ariel's de-
fiance to the two brothers, in 71, III, iii, 6i — 64. Passable is used by
Dr. Henry More in two senses, {\) probable, reasonable, i. e., to be received
and believed ; (2) penetrable, nt sup>ra. The sense is : if Posthumus be not
hurt, his body must be one that cannot be wounded, though penetrable ; if
his body be not wounded, it is "a throughfare for steel;" implying that
Cloten had thrust him through and through.
1 6 Cymbeline. I, iii.
27id Lord. [Aside] His steel was in debt, it went o' th'
back side the town.
C/of. The villain would not stand me.
2nd Lord. [Aside] No ; but he fled forward still, toward
your face.
i^/ Lord. Stand you ! You have land enough of your own;
but he added to your having, gave you some ground.
2nd Lord. [Aside] As many inches as you have oceans.
Puppies !
Cloi. I would they had not come between us.
2nd Lord. [Aside] So would I, till you had measured how
long a fool you were on the ground.
Clot. And that she should love this fellow, and refuse me !
2nd Lord. [Aside^ If it be a sin to make a true election,
she is damned.
\st Lord. Sir, as I told you always, her beauty and her
brain go not together. She's a good sign, but I have seen small
reflection of her wit.
27id Lord. [Aside] She shines not upon fools, lest the
reflection should hurt her.
lO. " His steel was in debt," &c. = Cloten paid off no scores with his
steel, but kept out of harm's way, as a debtor might do to avoid arrest in a
town.
13. "Fled forward." Steevens quotes in illustration T. er^ C, IV, i,
19,20. Cf. also M.forM., Ill, i, 12,13.
16. "As many inches," &c. That is, Posthumus did not give a single
inch of ground to Cloten. Cf. A. Y. L., Ill, ii : " One inch of delay more
is a south-5^a of discovery."
21. " Election," as in IC. L., I, i, 209, where France refuses to take
Cordelia to wife. A pun is also intended.
I, iii & iv. Cymbeline. 17
Clot. Come, I'll to my chamber. Would there had been 30
some hurt done !
27id Lord. [Aside] I wish not so ; unless it had been the
fall of an ass, which is no great hurt.
C/of. You'll go with us ?
ist Lord. I'll attend your lordship.
Clot. Nay, come, let's go together.
2nd Lord. Well, my lord. \Exeunt,
SCENE iv.
Efiter Imogen afid Pisanio.
Inw. I would thou grew'st unto the shores o' th' haven,
And question'dst every sail : if he should write.
And I not have it, 'twere a paper lost
As offer'd mercy is. A\' hat was the last
That he spake to thee ?
Fisa. 'Twas, his queen, his queen !
Lmo. Then wav'd his handkerchief?
3,4. "lost As offered mercy is;" an obscure expression, usually explained
as referring to the pardon of a condemned criminal ; and Steevens quotes, in
illustration, A. IV., V, iii, 58,
Like a remqrseful pardon slowly carried.
But why strain the passage to mean more than it says ? Imogen is simply
declaring that Posthumus' letter would be to her as an offer of mercy, allevi-
ating her present anxiety on his account ; and if the letter be lost, the offer
of mercy is lost also. " Offer'd mercy" has also been thought to mean, God's
offer of mercy to sinners ; a view which compares Imogen to something
worse than a condemned criminal !
1 8 Cymbeline. I, iv.
Pisa. . And kiss'd it, madam.
Imo. Senseless linen ! happier therein than I !
And that was all ?
Pisa. No, madam ; for so long
As he could make me, with his eye or ear.
Distinguish him from others, he did keep
The deck, with glove, or hat, or handkerchief
Still waving, as the fits and stirs of 's mind
Could best express how slow his soul sail'd on,
How swift his ship.
Imo. Thou shouldst have made him
As little as a crow, or less, ere left
To after-eye him.
9 his Fi the Keightley (Coleridge conj.) or Grant \\Tiite conj. my or
mine Ed. conj. make .... ear, F^ mark ....,/ Hanmer.
9. "with his eye or ear " = guided by means of his eye (to see where
Pisanio was standing, and whether he responded to the signals) or his ear
(to catch the sounds which Pisanio might make) ; though it must be allowed
that this interpretation is strained beyond measure. Warburton's emendation
of this for "his," . , u , -.u w-
As he could make me with this eye or ear,
used, as he imagined, Ihktikwq, as if Pisanio was pointing to the right or
left eye and ear, has been unaccountably adopted by all the editors. Except
perhaps in the case of the "boiled brains" in T., V, i, 60, a defective sense
of humour hardly ever landed critic in so great an absurdity, as this crotchet
of Warburton's. After all that can be done with the word "his," the
difficulty occasioned by "ear" remains untouched; and even Hanmer's
summary emendation is far from satisfactory.
15. "As little as a crow." Cf III, iii, 12 infra and K. L., IV, vi, 13,14.
15,16. "ere left To after-eye him"= ere you left off looking after him.
Cf. T. G., II, vi, 17,18 ("leave to love"); T. G., Ill, i, 182 ("leave to be");
T. &> C, III, iii, 133 and H., Ill, ii, 184 ("leave to do"); H., Ill,
iv, 66 ("leave to feed"), etc.
I, iv. Cymbeline. 19
Pisa. Madam, so I did.
Imo. I would have broke mine eye-strings : crack'd them but
To look upon him, till the diminution
Of space had pointed him sharp as my needle,
Nay, followed him till he had melted from
The smallness of a gnat to air ; and then
Have turn'd mine eye and wept. But, good Pisanio,
When shall we hear from him ?
Pisa. Be assur'd, madam,
With his next vantage.
Imo. I did not take my leave of him, but had
Most pretty things to say: ere I could tell him
How I would think on him at certain hours.
17. "eye-strings." These are supposed to be the tendons which move
the eyeball ; but in this place the word is more applicable to the nerve-
fibres which contract and expand the pupil. Cf. Toplady's well-known
hymn, " Rock of ages," last verse :
While I draw this fleeting breath ;
When my eye-strings break in death.
Also Spenser's F. Q., ii, 7, xxvii :
Or ever sleepe his eye-strings did untie.
Davenant imitates Shakespeare in The Unfortunate Lovers, where Altophil
says, in reference to Amaranta's eyes :
But here's another object that will make them start
Till they have cracked their strings.
Cf. too, A'. Z., V, iii, 16,17.
18,19. "The diminution of space" = the diminution of the space
which his image filled : a diminution caused, of course, by distance.
21. "The smallness of a gnat." Cf. L. L. L., IV, iii, 166.
24. " Vantage " = opportunity.
20 Cynibeline. I, iv.
Such thoughts, and such ; or I could make him swear
The shes of Italy should not betray
Mine interest and his honour ; or have charg'd him 30
At the sixth hour of morn, at noon, at midnight,
To encounter me with orisons, for then
I am in heaven for him ; or ere I could
Give him that parting kiss, which I had set
Betwixt two charming words, comes in my father.
And, like the tyrannous breathing of the north,
Shakes all our buds from growing.
Enter a Lady.
Lady. The queen, madam.
Desires your highness' company.
Imo. Those things I bid you do, get them dispatch'd.
I ^\-ill attend the queen.
Pisa. Madam, I shall. [Exeunt. 40
29,30. Cf. Ill, iv, 38,39 inf>-a.
33. " Or ere " is here disjunctive, and not the reduplicated expression,
which occurs in T., I, ii, 11, AL, IV, iii, 173, <S:c.
34,35. The two charming words are certainly not what Warburton
fixed upon — "Adieu! Posthumus" — nor any mere words of farewell.
Hudson rightly explains them "to be words which, as by the power of
enchantment, should guard his heart against the assaults of temptation : "
{Harvard ed.) ; and there is, not improbably, an allusion to some custom of
Shakespeare's own day.
36,37. Cf. Ill, iii, 61—64 :
but in one night
A storm, or robbery, call it what you will,
Shook down my mellow hangings, nay, my leaves.
And left me bare to weather.
Also T. of A., IV, iii, 259 — 266, and Sonnet 18.
I, V. Cynibeline. 21
SCENE V.
Enter Philario, lachimo, a Frenchman, a Dutchman, a7id a
Spaniard.
lach. Believe it, sir, I have seen him in Britain. He was
then of a crescent note: expected to prove so worthy as since
he hath been allowed the name of; but I could then have
looked on him without the help of admiration, though the
catalogue of his endowments had been tabled by his side, and
I to peruse him by items.
Phil. You speak of him when he was less furnished, than
1, V. The language of this scene presents a notable instance of slipshod
writing, with an occasional construction of equivocal meaning. Recent
publications on the authorship of these plays induce the reflexion, how the
fastidious taste of so great a master of prose as Francis Bacon would have
been shocked by such composition as we find in this and other prose scenes !
2. "of crescent note"= of increasing reputation, or, of great promise.
3,4. This very difficult passage has been passed over by all the critics,
with the exception of Staunton, who was reduced to the expedient of
proposing two emendations for "help," one of which has no resemblance
to the trace of the letters, and the other is simply laughable. It is natural,
at first sight, to suppose that lachimo is the person who is said to be
"without the help of admiration ; " but, if the passage be closely examined,
it will be seen that an atmosphere of prestige would be rather a hindrance
than a help to a person desirous of critically estimating the hero ; and even
tolerable sense cannot be extracted from the ordinary interpretation. What
lachimo intends to say is this : " but I could then have looked upon
Posthumus, whose name had not at that time obtained the glamour which
now invests it." The phrase is slightly elliptical, but not to so great an
extent as is to be found in other passages of this play.
6. " peruse "= observe, examine. Cf A. W., II, iii, 67.
22 Cymbelijie. I, v.
now he is, with that which makes him both without and within.
French. I have seen him in France: we had very many
there could behold the sun with as firm eyes as he.
lach. This matter of marrying his king's daughter, wherein
he must be weighed rather by her value than his own, words
him, I doubt not, a great deal from the matter.
French. And then his banishment
lach. Ay, and the approbation of those that weep this
lamentable divorce, under her colours, are wonderfully to extend
him ; be it but to fortify her own judgment, which else an easy
8. " that which makes him both without and within." Cf. I, i, 22 — 24
supra.
10. "with as firm eyes." Cf. Horat. Carm., I, iii, 18,19:
Qui rectis oculis monstra natantia,
Qui vidit mare turgidum,
where rectus like " firm" means steadfast, and therefore unblenching. The
Frenchmen here spoken of are credited with being eagle-sighted ; the eagle
being a bird who (to borrow an expression of Milton's) " kindles her undazl'd
eyes at the full midday beam." {Areofagitica.) We have already had
Imogen's comparison of Posthumus to an eagle (I, ii, 70 supra). Cf.
L. L. L., IV, iii, 226, where Biron asks :
What peremptory, eagle-sighted eye
Dares look upon the heaven of her brow,
That is not blinded by her majesty?
12,13. " words him . . a great deal from the matter " = reports him
widely from the actual fact. Cf. " storj' him," I, v, 27 infra. "Reword"
is in H., Ill, iv, 142 and L. C, i.
14. The Frenchman would have added "has won him sympathy."
15,16. "under her colours "= as taking her part.
15,16. "the approbation of those, that weep this lamentable divorce,
under her colours, are, &c." In strict grammar the verb should be in the
singular, and in strict logic, the abstraction, "approbation," can have no
plural. The usage of the time scarcely forbids the correction of this solecism ;
I, V. Cymbeline. 23
battery might lay flat, for taking a beggar without less quality.
But how comes it he is to sojourn with you? How creeps
acquaintance ? 20
and one editor, Keightley, reads is. Cf. J. C, V, i, ^^, quoted by Reed,
and L. L. L., V, iii, 56,57 of Biron's great speech on Love. Cf. also
Times (leader), Nov. 12, 1880, "The attempt of the Previous Examination
to ensure a fair general education on the part of intending candidates for
honours are lamentably deficient. " The occasion of the error is, probably,
common to this passage, and that in our text : viz. , the contigi.iity of a plural
noun : " colours " in the one case, and " honours " in the other.
16,17. " wonderfully to extend him ;" i. e., to give his reputation "the
help of admiration."
18. " without less quality " = without any quality. Halliwell correctly
expounds this colourable variation of the double negative. "Words of
negative import are sometimes used for words of positive meaning where
other words implying negation or detraction are placed in connection with
them." Fo. ed. I, 279. Cf. A'. L., II, iv, 140 — 142 :
I pray you, sir, take patience ; I have hope
You less know how to value her desert,
Than she to scant her duty.
Also IV. T., Ill, ii, 55—58:
I ne'er heard yet
That any of these bolder vices wanted
Less impudence to gainsay what they did,
Than to perform it first.
Also A. Cf C, IV, xiv, 57 — 61 :
I that with my sword
Quartered the world, and o'er green Neptune's back
With ships made cities, condemn myself to lack
The courage of a woman, less noble mind
Than she, &c.
Of these three instances, adduced by Malone, the second and third admit of
a possible interpretation, without assistance from the rule above given. The
scholar must exercise his own judgment here. The first is not worse than
some colloquial expressions now in vogue ; as, "I did no more than I could
help." In our text "less" has been superseded by more in most editions,
and by Ais in that of Hudson {1881), after Knight's conjecture; neither
substitute making even tolerable sense.
24 Cymbeline. I, v.
Phil. His father and I were soldiers together ; to whom I
have been often bound for no less than my Ufe.
Enter Posthumus.
Here comes the Briton ! Let him be so entertained amongst
you, as suits, with gentlemen of your knowing, to a stranger of
his quality. I beseech you all be better known to this gentleman,
whom I commend to you as a noble friend of mine. How
worthy he is, I will leave to appear hereafter, rather than story
him in his own hearing.
French. Sir, we have known together in Orleans.
Post. Since when I have been debtor to you for courtesies, 30
which I will be ever to pay, and yet pay still.
French. Sir, you o'er-rate my poor kindness : I was glad I
did atone my countryman and you ; it had been pity you
should have been put together, with so mortal a purpose as then
31. Malone aptly quotes A. IV., Ill, vii, 16 and Sojinet 30, 12.
33. "atone" (or attone) = to reconcile, to set at one. Thus in
A Select Husband, &c., John Davies, of Hereford (Grosait II, i, 8, 2, 15),
it is said of marriage :
Nay, many kindreds it doth so attone,
where, in line 13, "two in one" defines the words and fixes the pronunciation
of "one." Once more, in his Epigrams, No. 127 (Grosart II, k., 23),
it is said of two old foes :
So they which life could ne're attone.
Now lye in death as they were one.
Just so alone is all one ; but at once was at ofies (as in Surrey's Poems,
"I stand at ones") and then atottes, and only when the sound of w was
introduced into one was atones re-analysed into two words (Skeat). In C,
IV, vi, 72 atone is v. n. = to be at one.
I, V. Cymbeline. 25
each bore, upon importance of so slight and trivial a nature.
Post. By your pardon, sir, I was then a young traveller :
rather shunned to go even with what I heard, than in my every
action to be guided by others' experiences ; but upon my
mended judgment (if I offend not to say it is mended) my
quarrel was not altogether slight. 40
Fre7ich. 'Faith, yes, to be put to the arbiterment of swords;
and by such two that would, by all likelihood, have confounded
one the other, or have fallen both.
lach. Can we, with manners, ask what was the difference ?
French. Safely, I think : 'twas a contention in public, which
may, without contradiction, suffer the report. It was much like
an argument that fell out last night, where each of us fell in
praise of our country mistresses ; this gentleman at that time
vouching, and upon warrant of bloody affirmation, his to be
39 offend not Rowe offend Y^.
35. "Importance" = import, or occasion. It is also used fcr impor-
tunity, as in T. N., V, i, 370, 371 and K. J., II, i, 7.
37,38. "rather shunned to go even," &c. = took a pride in disregarding
the counsels of others. Since the constniction was missed by so careful a
critic as Johnson, and is not unlikely to mislead others, it is well to explain
that, "rather shunned to go even with " is a roundabout way of saying that
Posthumus preferred disregarding the conventions of his time, to being
" guided by others' experiences :" /. e., " rather . . than to be guided," &c.
47,48. " fell in praise " = fell to praising.
48. " country mistresses." While this use of cotuitry survives, and the
general practice of employing substantives as adjectives is archaic, it is
curious to find these words hyphened in Fj. In Shakespeare we have
childhood, companion, lady, moment, music, neighbour, region, remainder,
widow, &c. , so used. See Halliwell's Fo. ed. I, 279.
26 Cymbeline. I. v.
more fair, virtuous, wise, chaste, constant, qualified, and less 50
attemptible than any the rarest of our ladies in France.
lack. That lady is not now living, or this gentleman's
opinion by this worn out.
Post. She holds her virtue still, and I my mind.
lach. You must not so far prefer her 'fore ours of Italy.
Post. Being so far provoked as I was in France, I would
abate her nothing, though I profess myself her adorer, not her
friend.
57 profess Fj professed Ed. conj.
50. "qualified " = having all good qualities. Cf. T. of S., IV, v, 66 :
Beside, so q-iialified, as may beseem
The spouse of any noble gentleman ;
she was, as lachimo afterwards says,
A shop of all the qualities that man
Loves woman for.
V, V, 166,167 infra.
Cf. Davenant's Unfortunate Lovers, I, i :
But why, Rampino? since this lady is
So rarely qualified.
The hyphen ("constant-qualified ") introduced by Capell, was adopted by
Steevens, and appears in most modern editions. The alteration is not only
unnecessary, but injurious.
51. " attemptible "= open to temptation, assailable. Cf. The Miseries
of Mavillia, Nicholas Breton, 1599 (Grosart, II, c. 38), " I should bee eyther
attempted to vanitie, or " &c.
54. Posthumus replies in a line of verse.
58. "friend "= lover. It seems quite clear that Posthumus is speaking
as the husband, lover, friend of Imogen. What he ought to say is : "I
would abate her nothing, though I //-(?/^j-j-V myself her adorer: /. e., one
who looks up to her, as to a superior being, with the worship of a votary,
rather than with the jealous affection of a lover. He means, in fact, to
assert for her a real objective excellence, apart from her private relation to
him.
I, V. Cymbeline. 27
lack. As fair and as good (a kind of hand-in-hand com-
parison) had been something too fair and too good for any 60
lady in Britain. If she went before others I have seen, as that
diamond of yours out-lustres many I have beheld, I could not
believe she excelled many ; but I have not seen the most
precious diamond that is, nor you the lady.
61 B7-itain Johnson Britanie Y ^ Britany Fj.
59. "As fair and as good," i. e., as any lady in Italy : the assertion is
nominative to "had been something," &c. ; "hand in hand comparison"
= a comparison, where the two things compared go hand in hand, or keep
pace. Cf. H., II, iv, 49,50. lachimo denies that any lady in Britain could
be as fair and as good as any of his countrywomen. As to the concurrence
of goodness and beauty, cf. M. for M., Ill, i (Duke's speech after Provost
goes out) : also H., Ill, i ("this was sometime a paradox," &c.).
61. " Britanie " in F, is a mere press error for " Britaine."
61 — 64. " If she went before others," &c. This passage is difficult, and
the editors have cut the knot, some by inserting " but " between "not " and
" believe ; " some by substituting "but " for " not ; " and some by omitting
"not." These changes have been adopted under the impression that,
because lachimo allows the diamond to out-lustre many, it must be intended
that he should likewise allow (on the condition stated) the lady to excel many:
so that the negative would be wrong. But (i) it is plain that he entirely
disallows even her equality with the ladies of Italy : and (2) the comparison
is between the lady's personal charms and the diamond's visible lustre.
" If she went before others I have seen as that diamond out-lustres many I
have beheld" points to Imogen's beauty rather than her goodness ; and if it
be said, that to restrict the allusion to her beauty is somewhat to strain the
language, the reply is, that a slight strain is to be preferred to a violent
alteration of the text. With the allowance demanded, the sentence, " I
could not believe she excelled many," relates to Imogen's goodness — her
excellence proper — cf 125,126 infra; and the climax, "but I have not seen,"
&c., is in perfect keeping. That such may be the meaning of "excelled " in
the text is shewn by the following from Davenant's Unfortunate Lovers, II, i :
For she is good and /air, and more to show
Her excellence, her vertues are so great
They overmatch his vice.
28 Cymbeline. I, v.
Fast. I praised her as I rated her ; so do I my stone.
lack. What do you esteem it at ?
Fost. More than the world enjoys.
lack. Either your unparagoned mistress is dead, or she's
out-prized by a trifle.
Fost. You are mistaken : the one may be sold or given, 70
or if there were wealth enough for the purchase, or merit for
the gift; the other is not a thing for sale, and only the gift
of the gods.
lach. Which the gods have given you ?
Fost. Which by their graces I will keep.
lach. You may wear her in title yours, but you know
strange fowl light upon neighbouring ponds ; your ring may
be stolen too : so your brace of unprizable estimations : the one
is but frail and the other casual. A cunning thief, or a (that
way) accomplished courtier, would hazard the winning both of 80
first and last.
Fost. Your Italy contains none so accomplished a courtier
to convince the honour of my mistress, if, in the holding or
loss of that, you term her frail : I do nothing doubt you have
store of thieves ; notwithstanding, I fear not my ring.
71 orifY^ if Rowe fior/iase Rowe purchases Y -i^.
78 your Y ^ of your Theobald.
78. The "unprizable estimations" are the lady and the diamond; for
the one is called "frail" (cf. 84 infra), and the other "casual," which has
here an unusual meaning, viz. , liable to mischance.
83. " convince " = vanquish, prevail upon or against.
I, V. Cymbeline, 29
Phil. Let us leave here, gentlemen.
Post. Sir, with all my heart. This worthy signior, I thank
him, makes no stranger of me : we are familiar at first.
lach. With five times so much conversation I should get
ground of your fair mistress : make her go back, even to the 90
yielding, had I admittance, and opportunity to friend.
Post. No, no.
lach. I dare thereupon pawn the moiety of my estate to
your ring, which, in my opinion, o'er-values it something. But
I make my wager rather against your confidence than her repu-
tation ; and to bar your confidence herein, too, I durst attempt
it against any lady in the world.
Post. You are a great deal abused in too bold a persuasion ;
and I doubt not you'll sustain what you are worthy of, by
your attempt. 100
lach. What's that ?
Post. A repulse ; though your attempt, as you call it,
deserve more — a punishment too.
Phil. Gentlemen, enough of this : it came in too suddenly :
let it die as it was born, and, I pray you, be better acquainted.
lach. Would I had put my estate and my neighbour's on
th' approbation of what I have spoke.
99 _jw?< 7/ Collier you Fj.
91. "to friend" = for [my] friend. A common expression. Cf. M.,
IV, iii, 10 : " As I shall find my time to friend" and The He of Guls, John
Day, 1606 (Bullen), p. 21, " and my stars tofi-iend."
98. "abused" = duped, fooled. Cf. VV. T., II, i, 141.
30 Cymbeline. I, v.
Post. What lady would you choose to assail ?
lach. Yours, whom, in constancy, you think stands so safe.
I will lay you ten thousand ducats to your ring, that, commend
me to the court where your lady is, with no more advantage
than the opportunity of a second conference, and I will bring
from thence that honour of hers, which you imagine so reserved.
Post. I will wage against your gold, gold to it. My ring I
hold dear as my finger : 'tis part of it.
lach. You are her friend, and therein the wiser. If you
buy ladies' flesh at a million a dram, you cannot preserve it from
tainting ; but I see that you have some religion in you, that you
fear.
Post. This is but a custom in your tongue ; you bear a
graver purpose, I hope.
lach. I am the master of my speeches, and would undergo
what's spoken, I swear.
Post. Will you ? I shall but lend my diamond till your
return. Let there be covenants drawn between us. My mistress
exceeds in goodness the hugeness of your unworthy thinking.
I dare you to this match : here's my ring.
Phil. I will have it no lay.
112 and ova. Pope.
Ii6 her friend Yj^. conj. (Grant White obs.) fly;7V«(/ F^ a/ra/i/ Theobald
afeard Collier.
112. "and " has no grammatical standing here.
Ii6. "you are," &c. = you are her lover, and therefore know her well,
and how much you can wager on her honour. Cf. I, v, 57,58 supra. The
correction is the converse of one required in W, 71, I, ii, 307.
I, V. Cymbeline. 3 1
lach. By the gods it is one ! If I bring you no sufficient
testimony that I have enjoyed the dearest bodily part of your 130
mistress, my ten thousand ducats are yours : so is your diamond
too. If I come off, and leave her in such honour as you have
trust in, she your jewel, this your jewel, and my gold, are
yours ; provided I have your commendation for my more free
entertainment.
Post. I embrace these conditions : let us have articles
betwixt us. Only thus far you shall answer : if you make your
voyage upon her, and give me directly to understand you have
prevailed, I am no further your enemy — she is not worth our
debate : if she remain unseduced, you not making it appear 140
otherwise, for your ill opinion and the assault you have made
to her chastity you shall answer me with your sword.
lach. Your hand : a covenant. We will have these things
set down by lawful counsel, and straight away for Britain, lest
the bargain should catch cold and starve. I will fetch my gold,
and have our two wagers recorded.
Post. Agreed.
French. Will this hold, think you ?
Phil. Signior lachimo will not from it. Pray, let us follow
them. \Fxeufif. 150
136. But only one has been stated, and that twice over !
144,145. "lest the bargain should catch cold and starve" = lest the
wager which was laid in the heat of the dispute should be declared off,
when the disputants have had time for cool reflection. Cf. M., IV, i, 3
from end :
This deed I'll do before this purpose cool ;
and T, N., Ill, iv, Maria's penult, speech.
32 Cymbeline. I, vi.
SCENE vi.
Enter Queen, Ladies, a7id Cornelius.
Quee7i. While yet the dew's on ground, gather those flowers;
Make haste : who has the note of them ?
Lady. I, madam.
Queen. Despatch. \Exe2mt Ladies.
Now, master doctor, have you brought those drugs ?
Cor. 'Pleaseth your highness, ay : here they are, madam.
But, I beseech your grace, without off"ence.
My conscience bids me ask, wherefore you have
Commanded of me these base poisonous compounds,
Which are the movers of a languishing death ;
But, though slow, deadly.
Queen. I do wonder, doctor, 10
Thou ask'st me such a question : have I not been
Thy pupil long ? Hast thou not learn'd me how
To make perfumes, distil, preserve ? yea, so,
That our great king himself doth woo me oft
\o I do -wonder 'aX.^tsQ'os, IivonderY^.
I. See note on I, ii, 32 supra; nevertheless it is scarcely possible to resist
the conclusion, that in this scene and the next, as in I, i and others, some of
the verse-lines were condensed from prose : e.g. 39 — 42 infra, where we
expect to find, " but there is no danger in tJiat show of death xvhich it
makes, more than the locking up of the spirits for a time, to be greater
on rcN-iving." We know that some verse-speeches in C. and T. of A. were
so made up from North's prose.
10. Steevens supports his conjecture by quoting from M. A., II, ii
(beginning), '■'■\ do much wonder" &c. Cf. W. T., I, ii, 324.
I, vi. Cymbeline. 33
For my confections. Having thus far proceeded —
Unless thou think'st me devilish — is't not meet
That I did amplify my judgment in
Other conclusions ? I will try the forces
Of these thy compounds on such creatures as
We count not worth the hanging, but none human,
To try the vigour of them, and apply
AUayments to their act ; and by them gather
Their several virtues and effects.
Cor. Your highness
Shall from this practice but make hard your heart.
18. "conclusions" was the common word of the time for what we call
experiments ; but the term was logical, and the experiments were really
made to prove one of the premises. Cf. H., Ill, iv, 195 and A. & C, V,
ii (last speech), quoted by Malone.
24. Johnson's note on this passage cannot be too often reprinted. "The
thought would probably have been more amplified, had our author lived to
be shocked with such experiments as have been published in later times, by
a race of men who have practised tortures without pity, and related them
without shame, and are yet suffered to erect their heads among human beings.
Cape saxa manu, cape robora, pastor."
To this note need only be added the reflection, that its severity would have
been greater, had Johnson lived to be shocked with experiments, of a far
more subtle and agonizing nature, which are the standing disgrace of our
times ; when we see
All pity choked with custom of fell deeds,
and the pitiless doers, for certain imaginary benefits and illusory discoveries,
patronized by our learned societies, rewarded with chairs and titles, and com-
memorated with busts and statues. What were Shakespeare's own views may
be judged from the fact that he makes the wicked Queen the experimenter,
and the Doctor the moralist.
34 Cymbeline. I, vi.
Besides, the seeing these effects will be
Both noisome and infectious.
Queen. [^Taking a casket from Cor.] O content thee !
Enter Pisanio.
Here comes a flattering rascal : upon him \_Aside.
Will I first work : he's for his master, and
An enemy to my son. How now, Pisanio ?
Doctor, your service for this time is ended : 30
Take your own way.
Cor. [Aside] I do suspect you, madam ;
But you shall do no harm.
Queen. Hark thee, a word — [To Pisanio.
Cor. [As/de] I do not like her. She doth think she has
Strange lingering poisons : I do know her spirit,
And will not trust one of her malice with
A drug of such damn'd nature. Those she has
Will stupefy and dull the sense awhile,
Which first, perchance, she'll prove on cats and dogs,
Then afterward up higher ; but there is
No danger in what show of death it makes, 40
More than the locking up the spirits a time,
2S,2g master, and An Ed. conj. (Anon. conj. ap. Camb. ed.) master.
And Fj.
38,39. Johnson seems to have had this passage in mind when he denounces
the unreasonable pretensions of the physician, who "prepares himself by
familiar cruelty for that profession which he is to exercise upon the tender
and the helpless, upon feeble bodies and broken minds, and by which he has
opportunities to extend his arts of torture, and continue those experiments
upon infancy and age, which he has hitherto tried upon cats and dogs." —
The Idler: No. 17.
I.vi.
Cymbeline.
35
To be more fresh, reviving. She is fool'd
With a most false effect, and I the truer,
So to be false with her.
Queen. No further service, doctor.
Until I send for thee.
Cor. I humbly take my leave. \Exit.
Quee?i. Weeps she still, say'st thou? Dost thou think in time
She will not quench, and let instructions enter
Where folly now possesses ? Do thou work ;
When thou shalt bring me word she loves my son,
I'll tell thee, on the instant thou art then
As great as is thy master : greater, for
His fortunes all lie speechless, and his name
Is at last gasp. Return he cannot, nor
Continue where he is : to shift his being
Is to exchange one misery with another.
And every day that comes, comes to decay
A day's work in him. What shalt thou expect.
SO
43,44. Cf. Pisanio's soliloquies in III, v {Exit Cloten), and IV, iii, 42.
46,47. " quench " v. n. See V, v, 195 infra for the v. a. = extinguish.
The question in prose would run thus : " Dost thou think that in time
her grief will not be quenched?" Cf. K. Z. , I, ii, 179 for allay, v. n.
Stanch was similarly employed : e. g..
Nor will these drops stanch, or these springs be dry.
Webster's Appius and Virginia. V, Iii.
54. "Shift his being "= change his condition or location. "Being"
can hardly be abode here. Had Shakespeare meant what Johnson supposes,
he would have written "shift his biding:" as to which cf. K. L., IV, vi,
228.
56,57. That is, "a day's work in him comes to decay." See note on I,
ii, 63,64 supra.
36 Cymbeline. I, vi.
To be depender on a thing that leans,
Who cannot be new built, nor has no friends
So much as but to prop him ?
\She drops something which he picks up.'\
Thou tak'st up 60
Thou know'st not what ; but take it for thy labour :
It is a thing I made, which hath the king
Five times redeem'd from death. I do not know
What is more cordial. Nay, I pr'ythee, take it ;
It is an earnest of a farther good
That I mean to thee. Tell thy mistress how
The case stands with her : do't as from thyself:
Think what a chance thou changest on, but think
Thou hast thy mistress still: to boot, my son.
Who shall take notice of thee. I'll move the king 70
To any shape of thy preferment, such
As thou'lt desire ; and then myself, I chiefly,
That set thee on to this desert, am bound
To load thy merit richly. Call my women ;
Think on my words. [Exit Pisa.] A sly and constant knave,
68 changest F j hangest Daniel.
58. " that leans " = " that inclines towards its fall." — Johnson.
68. "Think what a chance thou changest on." This expression is a
little obscure, but not difficult to construe or interpret, and certainly offers no
sufficient pretence for emendation. The Queen invites Pisanio to change
sides : i. e., from the party of Imogen to that of Cloten : to change, on the
chance of substantial preferment. So she naturally calls his attention to the
advantage he would gain by the change : bidding him think on how great
a chance of promotion he would change. She uses the present for the
future, by common usage.
I, vi. Cynibeline. 37
Not to be shak'd : the agent for his master,
And the remembrancer of her to hold
The hand-fast to her lord. I have given him that,
Which, if he take, shall quite unpeople her
Of leigers for her sweet, and which she after, 80
80 s%vcet F^ suite Collier.
77,78. "hand -fast" is one word (not two, as in most modern editions),
and = gyve, hold, prison, bond; especially a marriage-bond : "a remem-
brancer of her to hold the hand-fast " = one who, on her lord's behalf,
keeps her in remembrance of her hand-fast to him: i. e., who makes her
reniember "to hold (maintain) the hand-fast to her lord." "Remem-
brancer," like "agent," is a law-term. There used to be three officers of
the State, so-called. The word occurs in only one other place in Shakespeare:
M., iii, iv, 37; and "hand-fast" the like, viz., W. T., IV, iii, near the end:
" If that shepherd be not in hand-fast [i. e., in safe-keeping] let him fly."
The following gives the radical sense of " hand-fast: "
See now thereon how they long-straught him stretcht,
And first on Hand, fast to the same they naile ;
There with one Hand, nail'd to the Tree, he lies,
HatuI fasted so to Dolors heavi'st Hand ;
The Holy Rood. John Davies of Hereford, 1609 (Grosart), p. 16.
79,80. "shall quite unpeople her Of liegers, &c." = shall deprive her
of Pisanio, the only resident at court who safeguards the interests of her
absent husband. The expression is intentionally exaggerated and high-
flown. The Queen sarcastically pretends that Posthumus is a Foreign Power,
represented at Imogen's court by several resident ambassadors. Something
like this is in Webster's White Devil, last scene, where Lodovico says,
O thou hast been a most prodigious Comet ;
But I'll cut off your train, kill the Moor first.
Here the Moor is Vittoria's waiting-woman, the only one of her train.
80. " for her sweet." The Queen sneeringly alludes to Posthumus, not
as Imogen's husband, but as " her sweet," i. e., the man she is supposed to
have addressed and spoken of as "my sweet," the ordinary term of endear-
ment between lovers. The critics shirk the passage: the Clarkes and Schmidt
38 Cymbeline. I, vi.
Except she bend her humour, shall be assured
To taste of too.
Re-efiter Pisanio a?id Ladies.
So, so. Well done, well done.
The violets, cowslips, and the primroses
Bear to my closet. Fare thee well, Pisanio :
Think on my words. [Exit Queen a?id Ladies.
Flsa. and shall do :
But when to my good lord I prove untrue,
I'll choke myself : there's all I'll do for you. [Exit.
alone (or almost so) are right. Note the equivalent expressions in lines 76
and 80: "agent for his master " = "lieger for her sweet." Cf. A'. ^ J,
III, iii, 162, where the Nurse says,
My lord, I'll tell my lady you are come.
K. Do so, and bid wy siveet prepare to chide.
" Lieger "= resident ambassador at a foreign court (usually "lieger ambas-
sador"), and therefore agent for his own lord. Cf. The Synagogue, Ch.
Harvey, i66l (Grosart, p. 57, 1. 37 — 43),
To fit them for which blessed state of glory.
This is His Agent here ;
To publish to the world that happy story,
Alwaies and everywhere.
This resident
EmbassadoJir is sent.
Heaven's kgier upon earth, &c.
83. Cf. Greene's Menaphon, 1589 (Arber), p. 36, where these three
spring flowers are similarly associated.
85. Steevens believed that some words, necessary to the metre and the
sense, had been omitted from the Folio. Possibly Pisanio should say (aside),
as the Queen and her train are withdrawing, "Madam, I have and shall
do; " a customary ellipsis of the day.
I, vii. Cymbeline. 39
SCENE vii.
Enter Imogen alone.
Imo. A father cruel, and a stepdame false,
A foolish suitor to a wedded lady.
That hath her husband banish'd : O, that husband !
My supreme crown of grief, and those repeated
Vexations of it ! Had I been thief-stol'n,
As my two brothers, happy; but most miserable
Is the desire that's glorious. Blessed be those,
7 desire Y^ desires Fj.
I — 9. These are either rough notes for a speech, or the remains of a
speech cut down for representation. If the former, we must regard this
soliloquy as the reflexion of Imogen's thoughts, rather than their articulate
expression. The abrupt transition to the splendour of lachimo's speeches is
exceedingly striking. For a resemblance to i — 3 cf. A'. Z., I, ii, 195—197.
3. "that hath her husband banish'd "= that hath a husband who is
banished. This equivocal expression reads as if "hath" were the auxiliary
verb. On the contrary, in A. &" C, II, ii, 57,
As matter whole you have to make it of
reads as if "have" were the verb of possession, which it is not. In such a
language as the English, an occasional want of grammatical precision is
almost inevitable ; and Shakespeare, we know, was not a precisianist.
4,5. " My supreme crown of grief "= the greatest and crowning sorrow
of that grief, whose lesser tributaries are the three just specified : cruelty,
falsity, and folly =" those repeated vexations of it." Cf. II, i infra "Alas,
poor princess," &c., and O., I, i, 72,
Yet throw such changes of vexations on it.
Also Tennyson's Locksley Hall, st. 76, "a sorrow's crown of sorrows."
40 Cymbeline. I, vii.
How mean soe'er, that have their honest wills,
Which seasons comfort. Who may this be ? Fie !
Enter Pisanio arid lachimo.
Pisa. Madam, a noble gentleman of Rome
Comes from my lord with letters.
lack. Change you, madam :
The worthy Leonatus is in safety,
And greets your highness dearly.
8,9. "that have their honest wills," &c. = who have "godliness
with contentment" (i. e., the gratification of their virtuous desires), which
is said to be "great gain," and which both sweetens and keeps sxaeet their
simple comforts. Cf III, vi, 32,33 infra,
our stomachs
Will make what's homely, savourj'.
It is scarcely possible to fix, with exactness, the meaning of "seasons" in
this passage. The verb is used by Shakespeare in three distinct senses, of
which the first only is in direct relation to its root: viz. (i) to ripen or
mature, (2) to spice, salt, or otherwise prepare against taint or corruption,
(3) to make savoury. Staunton, who proposed to transpose the two clauses,
"but most miserable Is the desire that's glorious," and " Blessed be those,"
&c., probably failed to perceive that they are in the same order as the
personal reflections to which they correspond. Imogen bewails her lot, and
then reflects on the happiness she might have enjoyed had she been in a
lowly station. Then she generalizes, first on the misery of the high, and
secondly on the happiness of the low. It is natural for persons of rank
and wealth to believe that real happiness is only found among the lowly,
who are not actually in distress ; and for those of low estate to look with
envy upon a lot exempt from the pinch and toil of poverty.
II. "Change you, madam:" a very abrupt and even indelicate mode
of greeting any lady, seen for the first time, and here a princess of the blood.
We should have expected lachimo to say, with a low reverence, " Save you,
madam." The expression in the text might certainly mean, "do you change
colour," i. e., interrogative or imperative. Cf T. G., II, iv, 23. It were to
be wished that it could be read as a prayer: e.g., "May heaven change
your aspect of sorrow to one of better cheer ! "
I, vii. Cymbeline. 41
Imo. Thanks, good sir;
You're kindly welcome.
lach. All of her that is out of door most rich :
If she be furnish'd with a mind so rare,
She is alone th' Arabian bird, and I
Have lost the wager. Boldness be my friend !
Arm me, audacity, from head to foot !
Or, like the Parthian, I shall flying fight :
Rather directly fly.
Imogen reads. — He is one of the noblest fiote, to whose ki?id-
ftesses I am most infinitely tied. Reflect upon him accordingly, as
you value your trust. Leonatus.
So far I read aloud ;
But even the very middle of my heart
Is warm'd by th' rest, and takes it thankfully.
You are as welcome, worthy sir, as I
27 takes Pope take F,.
14. A common phrase with the peasantry of the present day.
15. "out of door." Cf./. C, III, ii, 183, and W. T., II, i, 69.
17. " th'Arabian bird "= the Phoeni.\.
20. Cf. Horat. Carni., I, xix, and II, xiii.
23. " Reflect upon him " = cast upon him some of the radiance of your
favour. See I, iii, 28,29 supra.
24. "your trust." That is the "trust" she has accepted by her
marriage-bond. For confirmation of this view see 155 — 157. "Trust" is
often altered to "truest," and "Leonatus" is made the subject of that
superlative, after a conjecture of Mason's ; but, as Malone says, this is
disproved by the context, " So far I read aloud;" showing that the dearer
part of Posthumus' letter would be subsequent to what she reads, and
therefore the signature separated from the suspected word.
G
42 Cymbeline. I, vii.
Have words to bid you, and shall find it so
In all that I can do.
lach. Thanks, fairest lady. 30
What, are men mad ? Hath nature given them eyes
To see this vaulted arch, and the rich crop
Of sea and land, which can distinguish 'twixt
The fiery orbs above, and the twinn'd stones
Upon the number'd beach, and can we not
Partition make, with spectacles so precious,
'Twixt fair and foul ?
Imo. What makes your admiration ?
lach. It cannot be i'th'eye ; for apes and monkeys
'Twixt two such shes, would chatter this way, and
36 spectacles Fg sped ales F^.
32 — 34. " the rich crop Of sea and land " = the vast prospect, &c.
The crop, or out-crop, is that which strikes the eye. It might, however,
be contended with some show of probability, that "the rich crop" is that
vast treasury of pebbles which belongs almost as much to the sea as to the
land. All other interpretations may be safely discountenanced. Those
" spectacles so precious," says the Italian, can do two very different things :
can see the whole hemisphere of the heavens above and the vast compass
of the sea and land beneath; and also can distinguish between any two
objects, either in the heavens (as stars), or on the shore (as stones), which
are, to a casual observer, so much alike, that they might be taken for twins.
It is curious and note-worthy, that Johnson expressed himself unable to
understand "twinn'd stones."
35. "number'd beach." Johnson expresses the same inability as to
this phrase ; but if we understood the one, we should easily understand
the other. If two pebbles are selected out of a vast number, and are
called pair'd, or "twinn'd," the treasury from which they are taken may
well be called "number'd," as containing not a pair, or tzuins, only, but an
indefinitely great number: and this treasury is the sea-beach.
I, vii. Cymbeline. 43
Contemn with mows the other ; nor i'th' judgment ; 40
For idiots, in this case of favour, would
Be wisely definite ; nor i'th'appetite :
Sluttery, to such neat excellence oppos'd,
Should make desire vomit emptiness,
Not so allur'd to feed.
42 i'tJi Fi i'the Camb. Ed.
44,45 Sic Fj vofin't, emptiness Not so allure Tyrwhitt vomit, emptiness
Not so allured Ed conj.
40. '* mows "= grimaces (usually associated with Jttops or mocks), indica-
tive of contempt or disgust.
40 — 42 & 46 — 49. It is interesting to see how these passages echo two
in ff., Ill, iv, 73—76, & I, iv, 55—57.
for madness would not err,
Nor sense to ecstacy was ne'er so thrall'd
But it reserved some quantity of choice
To serve in such a difference.
So lust, though to a radiant angel link'd,
Will sate itself in a celestial bed.
And prey on garbage.
On this last it may be permitted to remark, that the reading of the Quarto
1604,
Will sort itself, &c.,
would commend itself to general acceptance, but for the corroboration which
our text affords the reading of theF^. Cf. A. dr^ C, II, ii, 241 — 243.
44,45. "vomit emptiness," «S:c. = retch and bring up nothing: a very
licentious form of speech ; which seems to imply the preposition from (not,
as Capell has it, to) : for as a man vomits from repletion (not vomits
repletion), so, if the stomach be empty, he vomits from emptiness; an
operation only too well known to persons who suffer from that very
inconvenient malady, the jnal de mer. The sense, of course, is, that the
food, instead of appetizing, nauseates, and the hungry and empty stomach
rejects with loathing what it has only swallowed in imagination.
44 Cymbeline. I, vii.
Imo. What is the matter, 'trow ?
lach. The cloyed will,
That satiate, yet unsatisfied, desire (that tub
Both fiU'd and running), ravening first the lamb.
Longs after for the garbage.
Imo. What, dear sir.
Thus raps you ? Are you well ?
lach. Thanks, madam, well. 50
'Beseech you, sir, desire my man's abode, \To Pisanio.
Where I did leave him : he is strange and peevish.
52 he is Singer he's Y ^.
46. "'trow" (for "I trow") = I wonder (as we say, interrogatively).
It is difficult to trace this use of " trow" to its radical meaning, trust. Cf.
M. A., Ill, iv, where Beatrice asks, " What means the fool, 'trow?" Also
M. fV., I, iii, "What tempest, I trow, threw this whale ashore?" and I, iv,
" Who's there, I trow ? "
47,48. " tub Both fill'd and running." Cf. A/., IV, iii, 63; and J I'. T.,
III, iii, 21,22.
49. " garbage" or garbish = offal or other rubbish; supposed to be a
coined word from garble, and therefore meaning that which for its worth-
lessness is eliminated from a promiscuous mass.
50. "raps" = seizes, as an ecstacy. Cf. M., I, iii, 142 :
Look, how our partner's rapt:
and T. of A., V, i (Poet's second verse-speech), " I'm rapt. " Hence
"rapture" is seizure, as in C, II, i, 223.
50,51. So divided in Camb. Ed.
50 — 53. Hanmer's arrangement.
53. "strange and peevish " = strange to the place, and foolish or
simple. Cf. M. IV., I, iv, " his worst fault is that he is given to prayer;
he is something peevish that way ; but nobody but has his fault." C. of E.,
IV, i, 93, "thou peevish sheep." Also PasquiPs Procession: Nicholas
Breton, 1600 (Grosart, I, g, 7).
To dwell too long upon a peevish fashion.
I, vii. Cynibeline. 45
Pisa. I was going, sir,
To give him welcome. \Exit Pisanio.
hno. Continues well my lord,
His health, 'beseech you ?
lack. Well, madam.
Imo. Is he disposed to mirth ? I hope he is.
lach. Exceeding pleasant : none a stranger there
So merry and so gamesome : he is call'd
The Briton reveller.
Imo. When he was here
He did incline to sadness, and oft-times 60
Not knowing why.
lach. I never saw him sad.
There is a Frenchman, his companion, one
(An eminent monsieur) that, it seems, much loves
A Gallian girl at home : he furnaces
The thick sighs from him : whiles the jolly Briton
(Your lord, I mean,) laughs from's free lungs, cries, "Oh,
Can my sides hold, to think that man who knows
By history, report, or his own proof,
What woman is— yea, what she cannot choose
64,65. " he furnaces The thick sighs from him." This is well explained
by a passage in Greene's Menaphon, p. 34 (Arber): " the idea of her ex-
cellence, forst him breath out scalding sighes smothered within the fornace
of his thoughts." Cf A. V. L., II, vii, 147,148; and Steevens quotes
from Chapman's preface to his version of T/te Shield of Homer, 1598:
" furnaceth the universall sighes and complaintes of this transposed world."
66,67. Jas. Harris well illustrates this from T. ^ C, I, iii, 176 — 178.
46 Cymbelme. I, vii.
But must be — will in's free hours languish for 7°
Assured bondage !
Ii7io. ^Vill my lord say so ?
lach. Ay, madam, with his eyes in flood with laughter.
It is a recreation to be by,
And hear him mock the Frenchman. But, heavens know.
Some men are much to blame.
Imo. Not he, I hope.
lack. Not he : but yet heaven's bounty towards him might
Be used more thankfully. In himself, 'tis much :
In you, which I account his, beyond all talents.
Whilst I am bound to wonder, I am bound
To pity too.
Imo. What do you pity, sir ? 80
lach. Two creatures, heartily.
Ivio. Am I one, sir?
You look on me : what wrack discern you in me.
Deserves your pity ?
lach. Lamentable ! What,
To hide me from the radiant sun, and solace
I'th'dungeon, by a snuff.
70 liiill ill's Clarke conj. 'cuilPs F,.
74 heavens kncmj F^ heaven knows Pope.
74. — Cf. A. iSr= C, I, ii (near end):
Our worser thoughts heavens mend !
75,76. Pope's arrangement.
78,79. That is, 'tis beyond all talents.
84. "me" is here expletive, as in a score of other places in Shakespeare.
85. "snuff." Cf. H., IV, vii, 116, "a kind of wick or snuff."
I, vii. Cymbeline. 47
Imo. I pray you, sir,
Deliver with more openness your answers
To my demands. Why do you pity me ?
lach. That others do
(I was about to say) enjoy your but
It is an office of the gods to venge it, qo
Not mine to speak on't.
Imo. You do seem to know
Something of me, or what concerns me : pray you.
Since doubting things go ill often hurts more
Than to be sure they do ; for certainties
Either are past remedy, or, timely knowing.
The remedy's then born ; discover to me
What both you spur and stop.
lach. Had I this cheek
To bathe my lips upon ; this hand, whose touch,
Whose every touch, would force the feeler's soul
To th'oath of loyalty ; this object, which loo
95 timely kncnuing Fj timely known Johnson conj.
96 remedy Ed. conj. remedies F,.
97 re medy s ]ohn%on remedy Y^.
93)94- " Since doubting things go ill," &c. = since to doubt that things
are going wrong, &c. Cf. AL, I, iii, 137,138:
Present fears
Are less than horrible imaginings :
where " fears "= events provoking fear.
98. Cf. W. T., II, i, 186,187:
whose spiritual counsel had
Shall spur or stop me.
48 Cytnbeline. I, vii.
Takes prisoner the wild motion of mine eye,
Fixing it only here ; should I (damn'd then)
Slaver with lips as common as the stairs
That mount the Capitol ; join gripes with hands
Made hard with hourly falsehood, falsehood as
With labour ; then by-peeping in an eye
Base and ill-lustrous as the smoky hght
That's fed with stinking tallow ; it were fit
101,102 Fixing F 2 Fie ring F ^ .
107 by-peeping Kxii^i by peeping Y^ h'e peeping Steevens,
108 ill-histroiis Ed. conj. ilhistrioiis F^ tinlustrous Rowe.
102. "damn'd then " = damned in the event to be stated: as he
distinctly says at 108 — 1 10.
103. Cf. 2 K. H. 4, II, ii (near end), " as common as the way between
St. Alban's and London."
104. "gripes." We now say "grips." Cf. Webster's JF/»V^ Devil
(last scene).
than to stay the gripe
Of the fierce sparrow-hawk.
104 — ^106. This difficult passage is either shirked by editors, or (as by
Singer and Hudson) made ridiculous. It probably means, that the hands
were (metaphorically) hardened by familiar sin — habituated to vicious minis-
trations — as much as if they had been (literally) hardened by honest labour.
106. " by-peeping "= peeping, apart from or between the more serious
occupations of his debauch. It is a very ordinary sort of compound, well
illustrated by the following from Webster's Cure for a Cuckold, III, ii (end):
Some win by play, and others by by-betting.
The meaning is, that others win by wagers that form no part of the play.
107. " ill-lustrous "= shedding a sorrj- light. Steevens cites "lack-
lustre eye," from A. Y. L., II, vii, 21.
I, vii. Cymbeline. 49
That all the plagues of hell should at one time
Encounter such revolt.
Inio. My lord, I fear,
Has forgot Britain —
Inch. — and himself. Not I
Inclin'd to this intelligence, pronounce
The beggary of his change ; but 'tis your graces
That, from my mutest conscience to my tongue,
Charms this report out.
hno. Let me hear no more !
lach. O dearest soul ! your cause doth strike my heart
With pity, that doth make me sick. A lady
So fair, and fasten'd to an empery,
Would make the great'st king double : to be partner'd
With tomboys, hir'd with that self exhibition
Which your own coffers yield ! with diseas'd ventures
111,112. That is, it is not because I am inclined to convey such intelli-
gence, that I pronounce, &c.
118,119. " empery " = sovereignty, as in K. H. 5, I, ii, 226, and
K. R. 3, III, vii, 136. Cf. 162, 163 infra, where to "make new o'er" is
much more than to " make double."
120. "self exhibition "= very same stipend or allowance. Cf. C, I,
iii, 238 & K. Z. , I, ii : " Confin'd to exhibition," that is, the King is
restricted to his allowance. Also The London Prodigal, I, i, 7 — 10.
Father. What, doth he spend beyond the allowance I left him ?
Uncle. How ! beyond that ? and far more. Why, your exhibition is nothing, he hath
spent that, &c.
The substantive has almost the same meaning now at our Universities, but
is restricted to a stipend awarded for proficiency in learning.
H
50 Cymbelitie. I, vii.
That play with all infirmities, for gold,
Which rottenness can lend nature ! such boil'd stuff
As well might poison poison ! Be reveng'd !
Or she that bore you was no queen, and you
Recoil from your great stock.
Imo. Reveng'd ?
How should I be reveng'd ? If this be true —
As I have such a heart, that both mine ears
Must not in haste abuse — if it be true,
How should I be reveng'd ?
lach. Should he make me
Lie, like Diana's priest, betwixt cold sheets,
Whiles he is vaulting variable ramps,
In your despite, upon your purse ? Revenge it !
I dedicate myself to your sweet pleasure.
More noble than that runagate to your bed,
And Avill continue fast to your affection,
Still close as sure.
125 andY-^ or Ed. conj.
131 Lie S. Walker Live F^.
priest betwixt F^ priestess Uioixt Hanmer.
121 — 124. These " diseas'd ventures " and "boil'd stuff" are those who
have gone through the ordeal of "the tub-fast and the diet." Cf. T. of A.,
IV, iii, 85—87.
130. "Should he make me," suhaudi, "if I were you."
132. "ramps." Halliwell (fo. ed.) quotes from Pierces Siipcrerogafion,
1600, "A lustie bounsing rampe." Cf. Ben Jonson's Bart/ioloiiieT.u Fair, IV,
4: " Yonder is your punk of Turnbull, ramping Alice." See T. of A., IV,
iii, 256,257, for a perfect paraphrase of the te.\t here.
137. " close "= secret.
130
I, vii. Cymbeline. 5 1
Into. What hoa, Pisanio !
lach. Let me my service tender on your lips.
Imo. Away ! I do condemn mine ears, that have
So long attended thee. If thou wert honourable, 140
Thou would'st have told this tale for virtue, not
For such an end thou seek'st, as base as strange.
Thou wrong'st a gentleman, who is as far
From thy report, as thou from honour ; and
Solicit'st here a lady, that disdains
Thee and the devil alike. What hoa, Pisanio !
The king my father shall be made acquainted
Of thy assault : if he shall think it fit,
A saucy stranger in his court, to mart
As in a Romish stew, and to expound 150
His beastly mind to us, he hath a court
He little cares for, and a daughter who
He not respects at all. What hoa, Pisanio !
lach. O happy Leonatus ! I may say,
The credit that thy lady hath of thee,
Deserves thy trust, and thy most perfect goodness
Her assur'd credit. Blessed live you long !
A lady to the worthiest sir that ever
Country call'd his ; and you, his mistress, only
142. Siibaiidi " as " before " thou. "
149,150. That is, to periiiii a saucy stranger to traffic in his court, as in
a Roman brothel.
^52)153- For this use of the relative "who" of. M., Ill, i, 123, C, II,
i, 8, &c.
52 Cymbeline. I, vii.
For the most worthiest fit. Give me your pardon, i6o
I have spoke this to know if your affiance
Were deeply rooted ; and shall make your lord
That which he is new-o'er : and he is one
The truest manner'd : such a holy witch,
That he enchants societies into him :
Half all men's hearts are his.
hno. You make amends.
lach. He sits 'mongst men, like a descended god ;
He hath a kind of honour sets him off,
More than a mortal seeming. Be not angry.
Most mighty princess, that I have adventur'd 170
To try your taking of a false report, which hath
Honour'd with confirmation your great judgment,
In the election of a sir so rare,
Which, you know, cannot err. The love I bear him
Made me to fan you thus ; but the gods made you,
Unlike all others, chaffless. Pray your pardon.
Imo. All's well, sir : take my power i'th'court for yours.
166 into Fj unto Hanmer.
168 descended Y .^ defended Y^.
165. " into" = unto. He enchants not only persons, but societies, so
that they come within his magic circle.
166. It is a note in Imogen's character that her righteous anger is so
easily appeased. She is impressionable, without being impulsive.
167. " like a descended god." Upton points out that Jupiter was called
Ka-aipdrrjg ; and quotes from the Arts of the Apostles, XIV, 11, " The gods
are come down to us in the likeness of men,"
173. "election." Cf. I, iii, 21 supra.
I, vii. Cyvibeline. 53
lach. My humble thanks. I had almost forgot
T'entreat your grace but in a small request,
And yet of moment, too ; for it concerns 180
Your lord : myself and other noble friends
Are partners in the business.
Imo. Pray what is't ?
lach. Some dozen Romans of us, and your lord.
The best feather of our wing, have mingled sums
To buy a present for the emperor ;
Which I, the factor for the rest, have done
In France : 'tis plate of rare device, and jewels
Of rich and exquisite form, their values great ;
And I am something curious, being strange.
To have them in safe stowage : may it please you 190
To take them in protection.
Imo. Willingly ;
And pawn mine honour for their safety : since
My lord hath interest in them, I will keep them
In my bed-chamber.
lach. They are in a trunk,
Attended by my men. I will make bold
To send them to you, only for this night :
I must aboard to-morrow.
Imo. O no, no.
lach. Yes, I beseech ; or I shall short my word
By lengthening my return. From Gallia
" curious "= careful, scrupulous.
54 Cymbeline, I, vii & II, i.
I cross'd the seas on purpose, and on promise
To see your grace.
Imo. I thank you for your pains :
But not away to-morrow.
lach. O, I must, madam.
Therefore I shall beseech you, if you please
To greet your lord with writing, do't to-night :
I have outstood my time, which is material
To th'tender of our present.
Imo. I will write.
Send your trunk to me : it shall safe be kept.
And truly yielded to you. You're very welcome. \Exeu7it?[
ACT II.
SCENE i.
Enter Cloten a7id the tivo Lords.
Clot. Was there ever man had such luck ? When I kiss'd
the jack upon an upcast, to be hit away ! I had a hundred
pound on't : and then a whoreson jackanapes must take me up
I. In the game of bowls, the small bowl, which is first cast, is called
the jack. A player's bowl, which lies against and touches the jack, is
said to kiss it. This, which is the position of greatest advantage, may
be obtained merely by an upcast of that bowl, or by its collision with
another. Cloten's bowl was in this position, and was hit away by another.
Pace Mason (who is followed by Knight), the words "upon an upcast"
need not be dissociated from those immediately preceding.
II, i. Cymbeline. 55
for swearing ; as if I borrowed mine oaths of him, and might
not spend them at my pleasure.
\st Lord. What got he by that ? You have broke his pate
with your bowl.
2nd Lord. [Aside] If his wit had been like him that broke
it, it would have run all out.
C/ot When a gendeman is dispos'd to swear, it is not for
any standers-by to curtal his oaths. Ha ?
2nd Lord. No, my lord, [Aside] nor crop the ears of them.
Clot ^V'horeson dog ! I give him satisfaction ! Would he
had been one of my rank !
2nd Lord. [Aside] To have smell'd like a fool.
C/oi. I am not vexed more at anything in th'earth : a pox
on't ! I had rather not be so noble as I am : they dare not
fight with me, because of the queen, my mother. Every jack-
slave hath his bellyful of fighting, and I must go up and down
like a cock that nobody can match.
13 give Fg £-ave F^
19 M/y/ie// Camh. Ed. belly full Y -^^ belly-full Za^eCi.
11. " Ha ?"= Eh ? of the present day.
12. The words "No, my lord" are assigned by Johnson to the
1st Lord. The speaker makes a pun out of Cloten's use of "curtal," the
corresponding substantive formerly signifying a horse or dog whose tail had
been docked. Cf. M. W., II, i and C. of E., Ill, ii.
15. Here, too, the 2nd Lord puns in a similar manner, taking " rank "
to do duty for " rankness." Steevens notes the same quibble in A. Y. L.,
' ' Touch. Nay, if I keep not my rank
Ros. Thou losest thy old smell.
For the implied meaning of rank and rankness, cf T. N., II, v and
K. U. 8, IV, i. The prince's infirmity is alUided to in I, iii, 2 supra.
56 Cymheline. II, i.
27id Lord. [Aside] You are cock and capon too ; and you
crow, cock, with your comb on.
C/of. Sayest thou ?
27id Lord. It is not fit your lordship should undertake
every companion that you give offence to.
Clot. No, I know that; but it is fit I should commit offence
to my inferiors.
2nd Lord. Ay, it is fit for your lordship only.
Clot. AVhy, so I say.
\st Lord. Did you hear of a stranger that's come to court 30
to-night ?
Clot. A stranger, and I not know on't !
2nd Lord. [Aside] He's a strange fellow himself, and
knows it not.
1st Lord. There's an Italian come ; and 'tis thought, one
of Leonatus' friends.
Clot. Leonatus ! A banished rascal ; and he's another,
whatsoever he be. Who told you of this stranger ?
\st LyOrd. One of your lordship's pages.
Clot. Is it fit I went to look upon him } Is there no 40
derogation in't ?
2nd Lord. You cannot derogate, my lord.
Clot. Not easily, I think.
24 your F3 yon F^ Fo.
21. Cloten is compared to a capon merely for his fatness.
22. It is, of course, implied here that he is a coxcomb.
24,25 & 42. These remarks are assigned by Johnson to the 1st Lord.
II, i. Cymbeline. 57
2nd Lord. [Aside.] You are a fool granted ; therefore your
issues, being foolish, do not derogate.
C/of. Come, I'll go see this Italian : what I have lost to-day
at bowls I'll win to-night of him. Come, go.
2nd Lord. I'll attend your lordship. \Exeunt Cloten a?id
That such a crafty devil as his mother \st Lord.
Should yield the world this ass ! A woman, that 50
Bears all down with her brain ; and this her son
Cannot take two from twenty, for his heart.
And leave eighteen. Alas ! poor princess,
Thou divine Imogen, what thou endur'st
Betwixt a father by thy step-dame govern'd,
A mother hourly coining plots, a wooer
More hateful than the foul expulsion is
Of thy dear husband, than that horrid act
Of the divorce he'ld make ' The heavens hold firm
The walls of thy dear honour, keep unshak'd 60
That temple, thy fair mind, that thou may'st stand
T'enjoy thy banish'd lord, and this great land ! \Exit.
48 Exeunt Cloten and ist Lord Capell Exit Fj.
49 as Pope as is F^.
58 husband, than F^ & Camb. Ed. httsband. Then Fj husband, then Fj.
62 Exit Capell Exeunt F^.
44,45. Cf. K. L., I, iv (just before Exit L.).
49 — 62. This, like I, vii, i — 9 supra, can hardly have been intended
for a finished speech. Both are of the same character, and they are either
rough notes, or longer speeches cut down.
58 Cymheline. II, ii.
SCENE ii.
Imogen in her bed ; a Lady attending.
Imo. Who's there ? My woman, Helen ?
Lady. Please you, madam.
Imo. What hour is it ?
Lady. Almost midnight, madam.
Ifno. I have read three hours then ; mine eyes are weak.
Fold down the leaf where I have left. To bed.
Take not away the taper, leave it burning ;
II, ii. In the course of this lovely scene one is frequently reminded of
passages in the second act of Macbeth : a fact which may be of use in
determining an earlier date (1606) for parts of this play. One would naturally
infer that this scene was written while M., II, i, ii and iii were fresh in the
writer's mind. There is little else to be done, in the way of comment, but
to note some of these resemblances.
2. Cf. J/., II, i, 3:
Ban. How goes the night, boy ?
Fie. The moon is down ; I have not heard the clock.
Ban. And she goes down at twelve.
7 — 10. Cf. Ibid., i, 6 — 9 :
A heavy summons lies like lead upon me.
* * * Merciful powers !
Restrain in me the cursed thoughts that nature
Gives way to in repose !
11,12. Cf. Ibid., ii, 38:
Sore labour's bath.
12 — 14. Cf. Ibid., i, 55,56:
With Tarquin's ravishing strides, towards his design
Moves like a ghost.
22,23. Cf. Ibid., iii, 18 :
His silver skin laced with his golden blood.
31. Cf. Ibid., iii, 81 :
Shake off this downy sleep, death's counterfeit.
Add to these the slight resemblance in the mention of "heaven" and
"hell " at the end both of this scene and of M. , II, i.
II, ii. Cymbeline. 59
And if thou canst awake by four o'th'clock
I pr'ythee call me. Sleep hath seiz'd me wholly. [Exit Lady.
To your protection I commend me, gods !
From fairies and the tempters of the night
Guard me, 'beseech ye! [Sleeps. 10
[lachimo comes from the trunk,
lack. The crickets sing, and man's o'er-labour'd sense
Repairs itself by rest. Our Tarquin thus
Did softly press the rushes, ere he waken'd
The chastity he wounded. Cytherea,
How bravely thou becom'st thy bed, fresh lily.
And whiter than the sheets ! That I might touch !
But kiss, one kiss ! Rubies unparagon'd.
How dearly they do't ! 'Tis her breathing that
7. The folio has "ceiz'd," one of the phonetic forms of the time. Cf.
N. Breton's Passionate Shepheard: 1604 (Grosart p. 71, 23) :
Never ceizdvc^on a creature.
16 — 18. Capell's vulgar interpretation is too monstrous to need refutation.
Shakespeare could not have intended the profligate Italian to sully the purity
of Imogen's lips. He does not kiss her. His desires are expressed in
a descending scale. He would touch her — that is unchastely : he would
kiss her lips : he would at least give her one kiss. " How dearly they do't "
does not, as Capell imagined, give any countenance to his view. " Do't"
is a common expression of the day, and may mean anything : i. e., do what
they are doing : which in this case is kiss each other, as closed lips always do.
Cf. V. &= A., 505,506 :
Long may they [A's " piteous lips "] kiss each other, for this cure !
O never let their crimson liveries wear !
This quotation leads up to the supposed resemblances between our text and
Shakespeare's two great poems. Such have been pointed out by Steevens
and Malone : e. g., between 12, 13, Z., 318 ; 16, V. c^ A., 397, 398 and
Z., 472; 21, 22, V. &= A., 481, 482 and Z., 397 — 399; 22, 23, Z., 419,
420 and 440, 401, with many others.
6o Cynibeliyie, II, ii.
Perfumes the chamber thus : the flame o'the taper
Bows toward her, and would under-peep her Uds,
To see th'inclosed hghts now canopied
Under these windows, white and azure, lac'd
With blue of heaven's own tinct. But my design
To note the chamber : I will write all down :
Such and such pictures : there the window : such
Th'adornment of her bed : the arras, figures.
Why, such and such : and the contents o'th'story.
Ah, but some natural notes about her body,
Above ten thousand meaner moveables,
19,20. Apparently Shakespeare follows Marston here : Malone quotes
from Pygmalion's Image, 1 598 :
through which [z. c, the lips] he thinks doth flie
So sweet a breath that doth perfume the air.
23. Malone quotes from R. S^J., IV, i, ICX3,I0I :
the eyes' windows fall,
Like death, when he shuts up the day of life
He refers " white and azure " to the eyes, and •' lac'd " to the eyelids ; but
quotes from Drayton's Mooncalf, 1627, a passage which is apparently an
imitation of that in the text :
And these sweet veins by nature rightly plac'd,
Wherewith she seems tlie luhite skin to have lac'd.
She soon doth alter.
Warburton and Steevens refer "white and azure" to the eyelids : Knight and
the Clarkes specially to the hue of the eyelids ; the latter adding "but they
are also 'lac'd with blue of heaven's own tinct' — marked with the deeper
blue of the larger veins." (Cf. Hamlet, III, iv, 91.) This appears to be
Shakespeare's meaning, as it is certainly true to nature. A fair girl's
eyelids are often of a bluish white, over which is clearly seen the dark blue
lacing of the veins.
II, ii. Cymbeline. 6i
Would testify, to enrich mine inventory. 30
O sleep ! thou ape of death, lie dull upon her,
And be her sense but as a monument
Thus in a chapel lying. Come off, come off; \_Taking off her
As slippery as the Gordian knot was hard. bracelet.
'Tis mine ; and this will witness outwardly.
As strongly as the conscience does within,
To th'madding of her lord. On her left breast
A mole cinque-spotted, like the crimson drops
I'th'bottom of a cowslip. Here's a voucher.
Stronger than ever law could make : this secret 40
Will force him think I have pick'd the lock and ta'en
The treasure of her honour. No more ! to what end }
Why should I write this down, that's riveted,
Screw'd to my memory ? She hath been reading late
The tale of Tereus : here the leafs turn'd down
W'here Philomel gave up. I have enough.
To th'trunk again, and shut the spring of it.
Swift, swift, you dragons of the night, that dawning
May bear the raven's eye ! I lodge in fear :
Though this a heavenly angel, hell is here. \Clock strikes. 50
One, two, three : time, time. \Exit.
49 bare Steevens (Theobald conj.) beare F^.
38. "crimson drops" is pointed out by Steevens as an inaccuracy.
51. "time, time," means that "four" is struck, the hour when Helen
was to call Imogen.
62 Cymbeline. II, iii.
SCENE iii.
Enter Cloten a7id Lords.
ist Lord. Your lordship is the most patient man in loss,
the most coldest that ever turn'd up ace.
Clot. It would make any man cold to lose.
2nd Lord. But not every man patient after the noble temper
of your lordship : you are most hot and furious when you win.
Clot. Winning will put any man into courage. If I could
get this foolish Imogen, I should have gold enough. It's almost
morning, is't not ?
\st Lord. Day, my lord.
Clot. I would this music wouM come ! I am advised to
give her music o'mornings : they say it will penetrate.
[Enter Musicians.]
Come on, tune : if you can penetrate her with your fingering,
so : we'll try with tongue too : if none will do, let her remain ;
but I'll ne'er give o'er. First, a very excellent good-conceited
thing ; after, a wonderful sweet air, with admirable rich words
to it ; and then let her consider.
2. The ace is evidently here — contrary to expectation — a losing card.
It would be useless to conjecture what game Shakespeare had in mind.
14. "excellent good-conceited "= of an excellently good conceit or
fancy. It was customary to puff a play that was running, by describing it,
on the title-page of the playhouse-copy, as "pleasant conceited," "excellent
conceited," and so forth : e. g., A Most Pleasaunt and excellent conceited
Comedie of Syr John Falstaff, ^c, 1 602.
II, iii. Cymbeline. 6"^,
SONG.
Hark ! hark ! the lark at heaven's gate sings,
And Phoebus gins arise,
His steeds to water at those springs
On chalii^d flowers that lies ;
And winking mary-buds begiti
To ope their golden eyes ;
With every thing that pretty is
My lady sweet, arise !
Arise, arise !
So, get you gone : if this penetrate, I will consider your music
the better : if it do not, it is a vice in her ears, which horse-
26 penetrate Y ^ pen trate Fj.
27 vice Rowe voyce F^.
20. Cf. I, vii, 116 supra {eft a similar solecism : also II, iv, 9,10 infra
for one that admits of some justification : and M., II, iii (after re-enter M.,
and Lennox witli Ross) "renown and grace is dead " and " the mere lees
Is left." Steevens quotes a(/ /. from V. &^ A., 1128:
She lifts the coffer-lids that close his eyes,
Where lo ! two lamps burnt out in darkness lies.
This is admirably in point.
21,22. Cf. JV. T., IV, iv, 104:
The marigold that goes to bed with the sun,
And with him rises weeping.
Also Sonnet xxix.
23. Hanmer alters " is " to iin, for the sake of the rhyme, and then, in
deference to modern grammar, but in defiance of euphony, alters "every-
thing " to all the things !
27. The misprint of " voyce " for vice occurs also in 31. of V., Ill, ii, 81,
wnere tne r ^ nas There is no voice so simple, but assumes
Some marke of vertue on his outward parts.
The error was doubtless due to the occurrence of the word in line 76. So
also is it possible that the error in the text arose from the compositor
anticipating the word " voyce " in the next line.
64 Cymbeline. II, iii.
hairs, and calves-guts, nor the voice of unpaved eunuch to
boot, can never amend.
Efiter Cymbeline and Queen.
2fid Lord. Here comes the king. 30
Clot. I am glad I was up so late, for that's the reason I
was up so early : he cannot choose but take this service I have
done fatherly. Good morrow to your majesty and to my
gracious mother.
Cy77t. Attend you here the door of our stern daughter?
Will she not forth.
Clot. I have assailed her with music, but she vouchsafes
no notice.
37 music Hanmer musics Fj.
28. " calves-guts "= fiddle-strings, just as "horsehairs" means the fiddle-
bow. It is amusing to find that Rowe alters "calves-guts" to cafs-guts,
Warburton to cats'" -guts, and Johnson to cat-guts ; and a later editor reads
catgut. Certainly all the three editors named took it for granted that musical
strings were made from the intestines of cats; whereas they have always been
made from the intestines of sheep, or of calves. Cf. M. A., II, iii (immedi-
ately before " Sigh no more, ladies"): " Is it not strange that sheeps-guts
should hale souls out of men's bodies ? " (As to which see M. of V.,\,i,
80,81.) Also T. &■ C, III, iii, 306, where musical strings are called cat-
tings. Whatever that may mean (etymologically), it has no relation to the
name of the harmless and necessary companion of youth and age, the poor
and the friendless.
28. "unpaved." For the sense cf. M. IV., I, iii, Caius' threat, just
before Exit Simple, and T. of A., II, ii, the Fool's answer, which extorts the
menial's involuntary praise, "Thou art not altogether a fool."
36. " forth "= out = come out. "Forth" was often employed in
this elliptical fashion. In Richard Hyrde's English version of L. Vives'
Instruction of a Christian Woman, 1592, we read, " As for forth abroad , "
meaning, " As for her going out, away from home."
II, iii. Cymbeliiie. 65
Cym. The exile of her minion is too new :
She hath not yet forgot him : some more time 40
Must wear the print of his remembrance out,
And then she's yours.
Queen. You are most bound to th'king,
Who lets go by no vantages that may
Prefer you to his daughter. Frame yourself
To orderly solicits, and be friended
With aptness of the season : make denials
Increase your services : so seem, as if
You were inspired to do those duties which
You tender to her ; that you in all obey her.
Save when command to your dismission tends, 50
And therein you are senseless.
Clot. Senseless ? Not so.
Enter a Messenger.
Mess. So like you, sir, ambassadors from Rome ;
The one is Caius Lucius.
Cym. A worthy fellow,
41 out Rowe ont Fj F^ oii't F, F.,.
45 solicits F2 solid ty Fj.
45. "solicits" = solicitations. S. Walker cites Shirley's Arcadia, V, ii
(Gifford and Dyce, vol. vi, p. 245) :
tir'd with his solicits
I had no time to perfect my desires
With his fair daughter.
51. There were two meanings to "senseless;" the Queen means
"insensible ;" Cloten understands her to mean "without sense ;" a supposed
imputation which he resents. Cf. I, ii, 66 and I, iv, 7 supra.
K
66 Cyinbeline. II, iii.
Albeit he comes on angry purpose now ;
But that's no fault of his : we must receive him
According to the honour of his sender ;
And towards himself, his goodness fore-spent on us,
We must extend our notice. Our dear son,
When you have given good morning to your mistress.
Attend the queen and us ; we shall have need 60
T'employ you towards this Roman. Come, our queen. \Exetmt
Clot. If she be up, I'll speak with her ; if not, Queen,
Let her lie still and dream. — By your leave, hoa ! Lords, arid
I know her women are about her ; what Messenger.
If I do line one of their hands ? 'Tis gold
Which buys admittance : oft it doth ; yea, and makes
Diana's rangers false themselves, yield up
Their deer to th'stand o'th'stealer ; and 'tis gold
Which makes the true-man kill'd, and saves the thief:
Nay, sometime hangs both thief and true-man ; what 70
Can it not do and undo ? I will make
67. "false" = falsify or perjure, according to the context. The verb
is common in Spenser. Steevens quotes from F. Q. :
'X\\ovifalscd hast thy faith with perjury.
The participle "falsing" in C. of E., II, iii, often quoted adl., is an obvious
misprint for "false." Similar misprints occur elsewhere ; e. g., T., II, ii :
Nor scrape trencher/«^ nor wash dish.
68. "th'stand o'th'stealer" = the post which the poacher takes up for
shooting the deer as they pass.
70. "true-man," like most words compounded with "man," was
commonly used in Shakespeare's time as one word. Thus we have "good
man of the house" in A. V. of N. T., and "goodman," "dead-man,"
"sickman," Sec, in Fj.
II, iii, Cymbeline. Gj
One of her women lawyer to me, for
I yet not understand the case myself.
By your leave. [Knocks.
Efiter a Lady.
Lady. Who's there, that knocks ?
Clot. A gentleman.
Lady. No more ?
Clot Yes, and a gentlewoman's son.
Lady. That's more
Than some, whose tailors are as dear as yours,
Can justly boast of. What's your lordship's pleasure ?
Clot. Your lady's person : is she ready ?
Lady. Ay,
To keep her chamber.
Clot. There is gold for you : 80
Sell me your good report.
Lady. How ! my good name ? or to report of you
What I shall think is good ? — The princess ! [Exit Lady.
Enter Imogen.
Clot. Good morrow, fairest sister ; your sweet hand.
Lmo. Good morrow, sir ; you lay out too much pains
For purchasing but trouble ; the thanks I give
Is telling you that I am poor of thanks,
And scarce can spare them.
Clot. Still, I swear I love you.
Lmo. If you but said so, 'twere as deep with me :
If you swear still, your recompense is still ^o
That I regard it not.
68 Cymbeline. II, iii.
Clot. This is no answer.
Imo. But that you shall not say I yield, being silent,
I would not speak. I pray you, spare me : 'faith,
I shall unfold equal discourtesy
To your best kindness : one of your great knowing
Should learn, being taught, forbearance.
Clot. To leave
You in your madness, 'twere my sin ; I will not.
Imo. Fools cure not mad folks.
Clot. Do you call me fool ?
Imo. As I am mad, I do :
If you'll be patient, I'll no more be mad ;
That cures us both. I am much sorry, sir,
You put me to forget a lady's manners,
By being so verbal : and learn now for all.
That I, which know my heart, do here pronounce.
By th'very truth of it, I care not for you ;
98 are Fj cure Theobald (Warburton).
98,99. That appears to mean, One, who has your great knowledge,
should learn others (by example) the forbearance you have been taught.
loi. Imogen's argument is this: If I am as you say, mad, I may be
allowed to think you a fool ; and fools cannot cure mad folks. If you will
be patient and forbearing, I will be no more mad, and will not think you a
fool ; and so we shall both be cured, I of my madness, you of your folly.
"That cures us both " proves that "are " in 1. 98, Fj is an error for cure.
103. That is, By expressing in zvords, what is ordinarily understood by
implication.
105 — 107. Imogen is accusing herself, in telling Cloten that she is so
uncharitable as to hate him.
II, iii. Cyinbelme. 69
And am so near the lack of charity,
(To accuse myself) I hate you ; which I had rather
You felt than make't my boast.
Clot. You sin against
Obedience, which you owe your father. For
The contract you pretend with that base wretch,
One bred of alms, and foster'd with cold dishes,
With scraps o'th'court, it is no contract, none :
And though it be allow'd in meaner parties
(Yet who, than he, more mean ?) to knit their souls,
On whom there is no more dependency
But brats and beggary, in self-figur'd knot,
Yet you are curb'd from that enlargement by
The consequence o'the crown, and must not soil
The precious note of it with a base slave,
A hilding for a livery, a squire's cloth,
A pantler, not so eminent.
118 J'oyle Fi soil Hanmer 'file Ed. conj.
116. " in self-figur'd knot "= in a knot of their own tying. Those who
have no dependency have only their own wishes to consult.
1 18. The folio has ",foyle," the point being inverted. If the apostrophe
were intentional, " 'foyle " might be an error for 'fyle or 'file = defile. But
" soil " seems the more probable correction. Cf. H., I, iv, 21.
120. " hilding "= hilderling = a base, menial wretch (Skeat). Cf.
T. of S., II, i, where it is used of a woman ; and The Miseries of Mavillia,
N. Breton (Grosart II, c. 43), where it is applied to a schoolgirl.
121. " pantler "== one who had charge of the pans, cut the bread, &c.
Cf. W. T., IV, iv, 56:
This day she was both pander, butler, cook.
70 Cymbeline. II, iii.
Imo. Profane fellow !
Wert thou the son of Jupiter, and no more
But what thou art besides, thou wert too base
To be his groom : thou wert dignified enough,
Even to the point of envy (if 'twere made
Comparative for your virtues), to be styl'd
The under-hangman of his kingdom, and hated
For being preferr'd so well.
Clot. The south-fog rot him !
Imo. He never can meet more mischance than come
To be but nam'd of thee. His meanest garment, 130
That ever hath but dipt his body, is dearer.
In my respect, than all the hairs above thee.
Were they all made such men. — How now, Pisanio ?
Enter Pisanio.
Clot. His garment ! Now, the devil —
Ivio. To Dorothy my woman hie thee presently.
Clot. His garment !
Lno. I am sprighted with a fool ;
Frighted, and anger'd worse. Go, bid my woman
130 vieancst Fg nicaii'st F^.
132 hairs F3 heires Y -^ haires Fj.
134 gar Die lit Fo garments F^.
125,126. That is, if it were a question of your virtues as compared
with his.
131 — 133. That seems to mean, that she respects her husband's meanest
garment more than the lives of a thousand Clotens. Cf. 0., V, ii, 74,75.
136. " sprighted "= haunted by a spright.
11^ iii, Cyvibeline. 7^
Search for a jewel, that too casually
Hath left mine arm : it was thy master's. 'Shrew me,
If I would lose it for a revenue 140
Of any king's in Europe. I do think
I saw't this morning : confident I am
Last night 'twas on mine arm ; I kiss'd it :
I hope it be not gone to tell my lord
That I kiss aught but he.
Pisa. 'Twill not be lost.
Imo. I hope so : go, and search. \Exit Pisanio.
Clot. You have abus'd me ;
His meanest garment !
Imo. Ay ; I said so, sir.
If you will make't an action, call witness to't.
Clot. I will inform your father.
jjjio. Your mother too :
She's my good lady, and will conceive, I hope, 150
But the worst of me. So I leave you, sir,
To th'worst of discontent. \Exit.
Clot. I'll be reveng'd !
His meanest garment ! Well. \Extt.
141 kings Rowe 2 kings Y ■^.
143 it Fi it then Ed. conj. (Anon. conj. ap. Camb. Ed.)
141. Cf. I, i, 3 supra.
146. "I hope so"=I hope it will prove not to be lost. Cf.
T. of A., Ill, vi, 8 (near beginning).
150,151. That is, your mother will, I hope, conceive how deeply I
detest the thought of my union with you. The worst, in this sense, would
be the best for Imogen, and therefore she hopes for it.
72 Cynibeline. II, iv,
SCENE iv.
Enter Posthumus a7id Philario.
Post. Fear it not, sir : I would I were so sure
To win the king as I am bold her honour
Will remain hers.
Phil. What means do you make to him ?
Post. Not any, but abide the change of time,
Quake in the present winter's state, and wish
That warmer days would come. In these fear'd hopes
I barely gratify your love ; they failing,
I must die much your debtor.
Phil. Your very goodness and your company
O'erpays all I can do. By this your king
Hath heard of great Augustus : Caius Lucius
Will do's commission throughly, and I think
He'll grant the tribute, send the arrearages.
Or look upon our Romans, whose remembrance
Is yet fresh in their grief.
Post. I do believe
6 hopes Fg hope Y^.
2. "bold" = confident.
6. "fear'd hopes" = hopes dashed with fear; "guiled" (/.^., fraught
with guile) is similarly used in M. of V., Ill, ii, 97, and similar adjectives
occur passim in Shakespeare. Posthumus has said that he abides, quakes,
and wishes. His patience is therefore the result of fear and hope.
9,10. Cf. I, vii, 113 — iif) stipra.
13. " arrearages " = arrears. The former word which occurs in Piers
Plowman, c. xii, 297, is the M.E. form of the word (Skeat s. v.).
14. " Or" = ere.
II, iv. Cymbeline. 73
(Statist though I am none, nor Uke to be),
That this will prove a war ; and you shall hear
The legions now in Gallia sooner landed
In our not-fearing Britain, than have tidings
Of a penny tribute paid. Our countrymen
Are men more order'd than when Julius Csesar
Smil'd at their lack of skill, but found their courage
Worthy his frowning at. Their discipline,
Now mingled with their courage, will make known
To their approvers they are people such
That mend upon the world.
E?iter lachimo.
Phil. See ! lachimo !
Post. The swiftest harts have posted you by land,
And winds of all the corners kiss'd your sails,
To make your vessel nimble.
Phil. Welcome, sir.
Post. I hope the briefness of your answer made
18 legions Theobald legion F^.
20 a Ed. conj. any Fj.
21 men F^ now S. Walker conj.
24 mingled Y^ wing-led Y ■^.
24 courage Dyce courages F^.
16. " statist " = statesman, politician. All three words occur more
than once in Shakespeare : the first and third in ZT., V, i & ii. The latter
appears first in Puttenham's Arte of Eiiglish Poesic, 1589.
20. This line being a foot too long, and " of any penny tribute" being
but poor sense, it is not unlikely that "a" (in the copy) was turned into
"any," owing to the contiguity of " penny."
28. Cf. Ill, iv, 34,35 infra.
L
74 Cymbeline. II, iv.
The speediness of your return.
lach. Your lady is
One of the fairest that I have looked upon, —
Post. And therewithal the best, or let her beauty
Look through a casement to allure false hearts.
And be false with them.
Inch. Here are letters for you.
Post. Their tenour good, I trust. \Opens them
lack. 'Tis very like, and reads.
Phil. Was Caius Lucius in the Britain court,
When you were there ?
lach. He was expected then.
But not approach'd.
Post. All is well yet.
Sparkles this stone as it was wont } or is't not 40
Too dull for your good wearing ?
lach. If I have lost it,
I should have lost the worth of it in gold.
I'll make a journey twice as far, t'enjoy
A second night of such sweet shortness, which
Was mine in Britain ; for the ring is won.
Post. The stone's too hard to come by.
lach. Not a whit,
31,32 lady is One Ed. conj. lady Is one F^.
36 ^^;w«<;' Theobald temireY^.
37 Phil. Capell Post. F^.
33,34. Cf. T. of A., IV, iii, 115,116.
11, iv. Cymbeline. 75
Your lady being so easy.
Post. Make not, sir.
Your loss your sport ; I hope you know that we
Must not continue friends.
lach. Good sir, we must,
If you keep covenant. Had I not brought 50
The knowledge of your mistress home, I grant
We were to question farther ; but I now
Profess myself the winner of her honour,
Together with your ring ; and not the wronger
Of her or you, having proceeded but
By both your wills.
Post. If you can make't apparent
That you have tasted her in bed, my hand
And ring is yours. If not, the foul opinion
You had of her pure honour gains or loses
Your sword or mine, or masterless leaves both 60
To who shall find them.
lach. Sir, my circumstances,
Being so near the truth as I will make them,
Must first induce you to believe ; whose strength
I will confirm with oath, which, I doubt not,
You'll give me leave to spare, when you shall find
You need it not.
47 not F2 note Fj.
57,58. Cf. I, vii, 113,114 & II, iv, 9,10 stip7-a.
61. "my circumstances " = the circumstantial details of my relation.
^6 Cywbeline. II, iv.
Post. Proceed.
lach. First, her bed-chamber,
(Where, I confess I slept not, but profess
Had that was well worth watching) : it was hang'd
With tapestry of silk and silver : the story
Proud Cleopatra, when she met her Roman, 70
And Cydnus swell'd above the banks, or for
The press of boats, or pride : a piece of work
So bravely done, so rich, that it did strive
In workmanship and value ; which I wonder'd
Could be so rarely and exactly wrought.
Since the true life was not —
Post. This is true ;
And this you might have heard of here by me.
Or by some other.
lach. More particulars
Must justify my knowledge.
Post. So they must,
Or do your honour injury.
lach. The chimney 80
Is south the chamber, and the chimney-piece
Chaste Dian bathing. Never saw I figures
76 was not Ed. conj. cnU ivas Fj.
76. Understand — "Since the true life was not" representable in silk and
silver.
82—85. Cf. Ill, iv, 153,154 infra:
Report should render him hourly to your ears
As truly as he moves.
Posthumus says, in effect, he never saw figures so little needitigzn interpreter :
II, iv. Cymbeline. 77
So likely to report themselves : the cutter
Was as another Nature, dumb ; outwent her,
Motion and breath left out.
Post. This is a thing
Which you might from relation likewise reap,
Being, as it is, much spoke of.
lack. The roof o'th'chamber
With golden cherubins is fretted. Her andirons
(I had forgot them) were two winking Cupids
Of silver, each on one foot standing, nicely 90
Depending on their brands.
Post. This is her honour
yet, 2S\n T, of A., I, i, 34,35, "to the dumbness of the gesture one might
interpret." Johnson, in his edition, understands by "cutter," sculptor : but
in his Dictionary, he takes it to mean the instrument, not the artist. As
to which, cf. W. T., V, iii, 77,78 :
What fine chisel
Could ever yet cut breath ?
If the former be the correct view, lachimo would say, that the sculptor
worked like Nature, and yet Nature with a difference : for she expresses
herself by the motion, breathing, and articulate speech of her figures,
whereas the sculptor could only give his figures gesture. Nevertheless,
putting motion and breath out of the question, he outwent Nature ; or, as
in T. of A., I, i, 37, he tutored her.
87,88. The fretwork of Imogen's ceiling had golden ornaments, like
cherubim, at the intersection of the bands : an ornament which provoked
Steevens' ire, calling it a " tawdry image." Cf. H., II, ii : " this majestical
roof, fretted with golden fire. "
88 91. Her andirons (or fire-dogs, a frame which supported the logs)
were two silver cupids, with their eyes half closed, and their torches
inverted, seemingly poised on one foot, but really depending on their brands
(or torches). This is Steevens' interpretation. " Depend " has been already
used in the same sense in I, v, 58 supra.
78 Cymbelhie, II, iv.
Let it be granted you have seen all this (and praise
Be given to your remembrance), the description
Of what is in her chamber nothing saves
The wager you have laid.
lach. Then if you can
Be pale, I beg but leave to air this jewel. See ! {SJKnving
And now 'tis up again. It must be married the bracelet.
To that your diamond. I'll keep them.
Post. Jove !
Once more let me behold it : is it that
Which I left with her ?
lach. Sir (I thank her), that :
She stript it from her arm — I see her yet, —
Her pretty action did outsell her gift.
And yet enrich'd it too : she gave it me,
And said she priz'd it once.
Post. May be she pluck'd it off
To send it me.
lach. She writes so to you, doth she ?
Post. O no, no, no, 'tis true. Here, take this too ;
It is a basilisk unto mine eye,
Kills me to look on't. Let there be no honour,
Where there is beauty ; truth, where semblance ; love.
Where there's another man. The vows of women
Of no more bondage be to where they are made
92,93. Cf. H., V, ii, 7, "And prais'd be rashness for it;" a similar
parenthesis.
HI. " bondage " = obligation.
11^ iv. Cymbeline. 79
Than they are to their virtues, which is nothing.
O above measure false !
Phil. Have patience, sir.
And take your ring again : 't is not yet won :
It may be probable she lost it ; or
Who knows if one of her women, being corrupted,
Hath stol'n it from her ?
Post. Very true ;
And so, I hope, he came by't. Back, my ring.
Render to me some corporal sign about her
More evident than this ; for this was stol'n. 120
lack. By Jupiter, I had it from her arm.
Post. Hark you, he swears : by Jupiter he swears :
'Tis true :— nay, keep the ring— 'tis true : I am sure
She would not lose it : her attendants are
All sworn and honourable : they induc'd to steal it !
And by a stranger ! No, he hath enjoy'd her :
The cognisance of her incontinency
Is this : she hath bought the name of whore thus dearly.
There, take thy hire ; and all the fiends of hell
Divide themselves between you !
Phil. Sir, be patient ; i^o
This is not strong enough to be believ'd
Of one persuaded well of.
116 ofie of her womcji Y„ one her women Fj one, her woman Collier 2
(S. Walker conj.).
127. "cognisance" = badge, visible token.
132. " of one persuaded well of" = of one whom we are persuaded to
think well of.
8o Cymbeline. II, iv.
Fosi. Never talk on't !
She hath been colted by him.
lac/i. If you seek
For further satisfying, under her breast
(Worthy the pressing) lies a mole, right proud
Of that most delicate lodging. By my life,
I kiss'd it, and it gave me present hunger
To feed again, though full. You do remember
This stain upon her }
Post. Ay, and it doth confirm
Another stain, as big as hell can hold, 140
Were there no more but it.
lack. Will you hear more ?
Post. Spare your arithmetic : never count the turns ;
Once, and a million.
lack. I'll be sworn —
Post. No swearing !
If you will swear you have not done't you'll lie ;
And I will kill thee if thou dost deny
Thou'st made me cuckold.
lack. I'll deny nothing.
Post. O that I had her here, to tear her limb-meal !
I will go there and do't i'th'court, before
135 the Rowe her F^.
144 you'll lie Ed. conj. you lie Fj.
147. "limb-meal" = limb from limb. The word is in Layamon 25618
(Skeat : s. v. piece-meal).
11^ iv. Cymbeline. 8 1
Her father. I'll do something. \^Exit.
Phil. Quite besides
The government of patience ! You have won. 150
Let's follow him, and pervert the present wrath
He hath against himself.
lach. With all my heart. [Exeunt.
Re-enter Posthumus.
Post. Is there no way for men to be, but women
Must be half-workers ? We are all bastards ;
And that most venerable man, which I
Did call my father, was I know not where,
When I was stamp'd. Some coiner with his tools
Made me a counterfeit ; yet my mother seem'd
The Dian of that time ; so doth my wife
The nonpareil of this. O vengeance, vengeance ! 160
Me of my lawful pleasure she restrain'd.
And pray'd me oft forbearance : did it with
A pudency so rosy, the sweet view on't
Might well have warm'd old Saturn, that I thought her
As chaste as unsunn'd snow. O all the devils !
This yellow lachimo, in an hour (was't not ?
Or less ?) — at first, perchance, he spoke not ; but,
149. Cf. K. L., II, iv, 283. Cf. Mr. Walter Besant's All Sorts and
Conditions of Men, 1883, p. 158, where Fagg exclaims, " Yes ; but I will be
revenged. / zuill do something. "
157,158. Cf. AI.forM., II, iv, 42—49-
165. "unsunn'd snow." New fallen snow has a purity of whiteness,
which it soon loses after exposure to the sun's rays.
82 Cymbeline. II, iv.
Like a full-acorn'd boar, a German one,
Cried oh ! and mounted ; found no opposition
But what he look'd for should oppose, and she 170
Should from encounter guard. Could I find out
The woman's part in me ! for there's no motion
That tends to vice in man, but I afifirm
It is the woman's part : be it lying, note it,
The woman's ; flattering, hers ; deceiving, hers ;
Lust and rank thoughts, hers, hers ; revenges, hers ;
Ambitions, covetings, change of prides, disdain,
Nice-longing, slanders, mutability,
All faults that have a name, nay, that hell knows,
Why hers, in part or all ; but rather all ; for even to vice 180
They are not constant, but are changing still
One vice, but of a minute old, for one
Not half so old as that. I'll write against them,
Detest them, curse them ; yet 'tis greater skill
In a true hate to pray they have their will :
The ver}' devils cannot plague them better. \Exit.
168 German Rovve lannen Fj.
170 But Fi From Hanmer.
179 navie F^ have a name Dyce conj.
169. Unquestionably this interjection was intended to represent the
;runt of a boar.
177. " prides "= sumptuous dresses.
179. M., IV, iii, 59,60:
smacking of every sin
That has a name.
Ill, i. Cyinbeline. 83
ACT III.
SCENE i.
Efiter, in state, Cymbeline, Queen, Cloten, and Lords at one door,
and at afwther, Caius Lucius and Attendants.
Cym. Now say, what would Augustus Caesar with us ?
Luc. When Juhus Csesar (whose remembrance yet
Lives in men's eyes, and will to ears and tongues
Be theme and hearing ever) was in this Britain,
And conquer'd it, Cassibelan, thine uncle
(Famous in Caesar's praises, no whit less
Than in his feats deserving it), for him
And his succession granted Rome a tribute,
Yearly three thousand pounds ; which by thee lately
Is left untender'd —
Queen. And, to kill the marvel, 10
Shall be so ever.
Clot. There be many Cssars
Ere such another Julius. Britain is
A world by itself, and we will nothing pay
12 Britain is Pope Britaine's Fj.
Ill, i. The political situation and events, which give rise to this scene,
are admirably described by Mrs. C. Cowden Clarke in her Girlhood of
Shakespeai-e's Heroines, 1852, vol. Ill, Tale xv, Imogen ; (he Peerless.
11.12. Cf. J. C, III, ii, 257: "Here was a Ccesar ! When comes
such another ! "
12. 13. " Britain is a world, &c. " This remark is equivalent to Virgil's
description : Eel. I, 68. "Et penitus toto divisos orbe Britannos." Of course,
if Britain were wholly cut off from the rest of the world, it would be a
world by itself
84 Cymbeline. Ill, i.
For wearing our own noses.
Qiieen. That opportunity,
Which then they had to take from's, to resume
We have again. Remember, sir, my hege,
The kings your ancestors, together with
The natural bravery of your isle,
Which stands as Neptune's park, ribb'd and pal'd in
With rocks unscaleable and roaring waters,
With sands that will not bear your enemies' boats.
But suck them up to th'top-mast. A kind of conquest
C?esar made here, but made not here his brag
Of "came, and saw, and overcame" : with shame
(The first that ever touched him) he was carried
From off our coast, twice beaten ; and his shipping
(Poor ignorant baubles !) on our terrible seas,
20 rocks Hanmer (Seward conj.) Oakes F^.
14. The allusion is to the contrast which the British nose offered to the
Roman : the snub to the crook. Cloten returns to the subject in the next
speech : "other of them may have crook'd noses." All the four speeches
assigned to Cloten in this scene indicate a character of more humour,
modesty, and courage, than, on the strength of other scenes, we should
credit him with. As to this, see I, iii supra, first note.
18,19. The division of the two lines is usually made, as in Fj, at
"stands | As," the words " ribb'd and pal'd " being made dissyllables. But
the second line becomes cacophonous by this treatment. If the division be
made at "isle | Which," the first line is very weak (not so weak, however,
as II, iii, 72 supra, nor weaker than III, iii, 51 itifra), and "your" must
count as a trochee : as to which see M. of V., Ill, ii, 17 — 20.
24. Cf A. Y.L.,Y, ii, 34,35 (Globe) and 2 A". H. 4, IV, iii, 45 (Globe) :
" I may justly say with the hook-nosed fellow, I came, saw, and overcame."
27. Ignorant = made in ignorance of the perils of the channel. Cf
III, ii, 20 infra.
Ill, i. Cymbeline. 85
Like egg-shells mov'd upon their surges, crack'd
As easily 'gainst our rocks ; for joy whereof
The fam'd Cassibelan, who was once at point 30
(O giglot fortune !) to master Caesar's sword,
Made Lud's town with rejoicing-fires bright,
And Britons strut with courage.
Clot. Come, there's no more tribute to be paid : our king-
dom is stronger than it was at that time ; and, as I said, there
is no moe such Caesars: other of them may have crook'd noses;
but, to owe such straight arms, none.
Cym. Son, let your mother end.
Clot. We have yet many among us can gripe as hard as
Cassibelan : I do not say I am one ; but I have a hand. Why 40
tribute ? Why should we pay tribute ? If Caesar can hide the
sun from us with a blanket, or put the moon in his pocket, we
will pay him tribute for light ; else, sir, no more tribute, 'pray
you now.
Cym. You must know.
Till the injurious Romans did extort
This tribute from us, we were free. Caesar's ambition,
33 Britons Hanmer Britaines Fj.
36 moe Camb. Ed. ??io F^.
31. " giglot "= harlot. Cf. M. for M., V, i, 51,52 (Globe) and
I K. H. 6, IV, vii, 41. Malone notes that the adventure narrated happened
not to Cassibelan, but to his brother Nennius. See Mrs. Clarke's Girlhood
of Shakespeare's Heroines, vol. Ill, pp. 400,401.
39. See note on I, vii, 104 supra.
41,42. This reference to the "blanket," as a means of intercepting
the sunlight, recals M., I, V, 54, where darkness is compared to a
"blanket." In no other place in Shakespeare is "blanket" thus associated.
86 Cymbeline. Ill, i.
Which swell'd so much that it did ahnost stretch
The sides o'th'world, against all colour here
Did put the yoke upon's ; which to shake off 50
Becomes a warlike people, whom we reckon
Ourselves to be. We do ! say then to Caesar,
Our ancestor was that Mulmutius, Avhich
Ordain'd our laws ; whose use the sword of Caesar
Hath too much mangled ; whose repair and franchise
Shall, by the power we hold, be our good deed,
Though Rome be therefore angry. Mulmutius made our laws ;
Who was the first of Britain which did put
His brows within a golden crown, and call'd
Himself a king. ~
Luc. I am sorry, Cymbeline, 60
That I am to pronounce Augustus Caesar
(Caesar, that hath more kings his servants than
Thyself domestic officers) thine enemy.
Receive it from me, then : war and confusion.
In Caesar's name, pronounce I 'gainst thee : look
For fury not to be resisted. Thus defied,
52 be. We do ! say'E.d.. conj. be,zvedo. AjyFj be. IVe do say Malone.
52 be. Clo. JFe do. Cym. Say Dyce | be. Clo. and Lords. JVe do.
Cym. Say Globe and Camb. Edd.
48,49. A euphemism ; meaning that the world was not big enough to
satisfy Caesar's ambition.
49. That is, against all show of right. Cf. i A'. JI. 4, III, ii, 100 :
For of no right, nor colour like to right, &c.
Also Webster's Appiiis and Virginia, III, i, "Sir, I had no other colour."
Ill, i. Cymbeline. Zy
I thank thee for myself.
Cym. Thou art welcome, Caius.
Thy Caesar knighted me ; my youth I spent
Much under him \ of him I gather'd honour,
Which he, to seek of me again, perforce 70
Behoves me keep at utterance. I am perfect
That the Pannonians and Dalmatians, for
Their liberties, are now in arms ; a precedent.
Which not to read w:ould show the Britains cold :
So Caesar shall not find them.
Luc. Let proof speak.
Clot. His majesty bids you welcome. Make pastime with
us a day or two longer. If you seek us afterwards in other
terms, you shall find us in our salt-water girdle : if you beat us
out of it, it is yours : if you fall in the adventure, our crows shall
fare the better for you : and there's an end. 80
Luc. So, sir.
Cym. I know your master's pleasure, and he mine :
All the remain is, Welcome ! [Exeutif.
71. " at utterance "= ready to be put out, or staked, like money at
interest, and, therefore, ready to be championed and fought for. Cf A Paste
with a Packet of Mad Letters. Book II, No. 43. Nicholas Breton, 1637
(Grosart II, p. 45) : " Usurers are halfe mad for lack of utterance of their
money." The phrase, which admits of no doubt, has been confounded by
Steevens and Malone with a very different "epithet of war," viz., "to the
utterance," which is a translation of the French a outrance.
71. "perfect "= in possession of perfect knowledge. Cf. M., IV, ii, 66.
83. " remain "= rest or remainder. Rolfe aptly cites C, I, iv, 62.
The word, as subs, is rare.
88 Cymbeline. Ill, ii.
SCENE ii.
Enter Pisanio reading a letter.
Pisa. How ! of adultery ? Wherefore write you not
What monster's her accuser ? Leonatus !
O master ! what a strange infection
Is fallen into thy ear ! What false Italian
(As poisonous tongued as handed) hath prevail'd
On thy too ready hearing ? Disloyal ? No :
She's punish'd for her truth, and undergoes,
More goddess-like than wife-like, such assaults
As would take in some virtue. O my master !
Thy mind to her is now as low as were
Thy fortunes. How ! that I should murder her
Upon the love and truth and vows, which I
Have made to thy command ? I, her ? her blood ?
If it be so to do good service, never
Let me be counted serviceable. How look I,
That I should seem to lack humanity
So much as this fact comes to? \Reads\ Do't. The letter
That I have sent her, by her cnvn command.
Shall give thee opportunity. O damned paper,
2 monster's her accuser Capell monsters her accuse F^.
5. "As poisonous-tongued as handed "= whose speech is as ready to
slander as his hands to administer poison. Cf. I, vii, 5,6 supra.
7. " undergoes "= bears up against. Cf. Witte's Pilgrimage, No. 17.
John Davies of Hereford (Grosart II, p. 24) :
And then, though Atlas on him Heav'n impose,
He that huge Burden, staidly undergoes.
in, ii. Cytnbelme. 89
Black as the ink that's on thee ! Senseless bauble ! 20
Art thou a feodary for this act, and look'st
So virgin-like without ? Lo ! here she comes.
Enter Imogen.
I am ignorant in what I am commanded.
Imo. How now, Pisanio ?
Pisa. Madam, here is a letter from my lord.
Imo. Who ? thy lord ? that is my lord, Leonatus.
O, learn'd indeed were that astronomer
That knew the stars as I his characters !
He'd lay the future open. You good gods !
Let what is here contain'd relish of love, 30
Of my lord's health, of his content — yet not
That we two are asunder : let that grieve him :
Some griefs are med'cinable, that is one of them.
For it doth physic love — of his content,
21 feodary Capell Fadarie F^.
21. " feodary "= accomplice, as in M. for M., II, iv, 122. Cf. W. T.,
II, i, 90.
23. "I am ignorant," &c.= "I must appear as if these instructions
had not been sent me.." —foseph Hunter.
33. " med'cinable " = useful as medicine, restorative, health-giving.
Cf. Tobacco Battered. Joshua Sylvester (Grosart II, 267, 1. 45) :
For, what to them is Meat and Med'cinable
Is turn'd to us a Plague intolerable.
33 35. That is, " Some griefs act as medicine to the lover ; and my
lord's grief, arising from our being parted, is one of them, for it prevents love
from being contented, which might not be the case if we were united."
34. " it doth physic love "= it keeps love in health and vigour. It must
be borne in mind that the sense is not, that the pain of separation " physics
love of his content," /. <?., keeps love discontented with his present lot ; but
that the clause, " of his content," is merely taking up the dropped thread..
N
go Cymbeline. Ill, ii.
All but in that. Good wax, thy leave : blest be
You bees, that make these locks of counsel ! Lovers
And men in dangerous bonds pray not alike ;
Though forfeiters you cast in prison, yet
You clasp young Cupid's tables. Good news, gods ! [^Reads.
Justice, and your father's wrath, should he take me in his 40
do?ninions, could not be so cruel to me as you, Oh ! the dearest
of creatures would eveti rene7u me with your eyes ! Take notice
that I am ifi Cambria, at Milford Haveti ; what your own
love will out of this advise you, follow. So he wishes you all
happifiess, that remains loyal to his voiv, and your increasitig in
love, Leonatus Posthuraus.
38 forfeiters Rowe forfeitures Fj forfeitotirs Fj.
35. "All but in that "= Let the letter be full of good news of my lord,
except his contentment.
36. "locks of counsel "= locks which keep counsel = clasps on Cupid's
tables, keeping their contents inviolate.
36 — 39. "The bees are not blessed by the man who, forfeiting his
[sealed] bond is sent to prison, as they are by the lover for whom they
perform the more pleasing office of sealing[love] letters. " — Steevens. Theobald
seems to have had in his mind "forfeitures," Fj, "for forfeitours, " F^,
when he corrected " tenure " F^ to " tenour" in II, iv, 36 stipi-a.
40,41. That is, "Justice and your father's wrath," &c., are not capable
of as much cruelty to me as yourself; for you can refuse to meet me.
42. Should not the relative "who" be understood immediately before
" would "?
44,45. The envoy of this epistle illustrates the structure of the
enigmatical dedication prefixed to the Sonnets of 1609 :
So he \vishes you all happiness, that I All happiness, &c., wisheth the well-
remains loyal to his vow, and your in* wishing adventurer in setting forth,
creasing in love. L. P. ' T. T.
Ill, ii. Cyinbeline. 91
O, for a horse with wings ! Hear'st thou, Pisanio ?
He is at Milford Haven : read, and tell me
How far 'tis thither. If one of mean affairs
May plod it in a week, why may not I 50
Glide thither in a day ? Then, true Pisanio,
Who long'st, like me, to see thy lord ; who long'st
(O, let me bate), but not hke me ; yet long'st,
But in a fainter kind. O, not like me :
For mine's beyond beyond : say, and speak thick
(Love's counsellor should fill the bores of hearing,
To th'smothering of the sense), how far it is
To this same blessed Milford ; and, by th'way.
Tell me how Wales was made so happy, as
T'inherit such a Haven ; but, first of all, 60
How we may steal from hence ; and for the gap
That we shall make in time, from our hence-going
And our return, to excuse ; but, first, how get hence.
Why should excuse be born or ere begot ?
We'll talk of that hereafter. Pr'ythee, speak !
How many score of miles may we well ride
'Twixt hour and hour ?
Pisa. One score 'twixt sun and sun,
Madam, 's enough for you ; and too much too.
Inw. Why, one that rode to's execution, man,
66 score Y ^ store Fj ride F., ;■/(/ Y ^.
69 execution Y „ excittion Y ^.
64. "or ere " = before. See note on I, iv, 33 supra.
92 Cymbeline. Ill, ii & iii.
Could never go so slow. I have heard of riding wagers, 70
Where horses have been nimbler than the sands
That run i'th'clock's behalf. But this is foolery :
Go, bid my woman feign a sickness : say
She'll home to her father ; and provide me presently
A riding suit, no costlier than would fit
A franklin's housewife.
Pisa. Madam, you're best consider.
Imo. I see before me, man, nor here nor there,
Nor what ensues, but have a fog in them
That I cannot look through. Away, I pr'ythee !
Do as I bid thee. There's no more to say ; 80
Accessible is none but Milford way. [Exeunt.
SCENE iii.
Etiter Belarius, Guiderius, and Arviragus.
Bel. A goodly day, not to keep house, with such,
Whose roof's as low as ours. Stoop, boys : this gate
Instructs you how t'adore the heavens, and bows you
To morning's holy office. The gates of monarchs
76 nor here., nor there Heath nor heci'e, not heere Fj.
2 Stoop, boys: Hanmer Sleepe Boyes,Y ^ See, boys: Rowe Sweet boys: Rann
(Malone conj. withdrawn) 'Sleep, boys? Anon conj. (1814) ap. Camb. Ed.
4 To Pope To a F^.
70. " franklin "= i. "A freeholder with a small estate, neither villain
Tioxvz.ss2i\."— Johnson. 2. A yeoman or small farmer. Ci. To Arctoa,^.-^. 1.
Joshua Sylvester (Grosart II, 332, col. 2) :
If any foole or franklin Lob doe like thee
It grieves me not, &c.
where "lob"= sluggard.
Ill, iii. Cymbeline. 93
Are arch'd so high that giants may jet through
And keep their impious turbans on, without
Good-morrow to the sun. Hail, thou fair heaven !
We house i'th'rock, yet use thee not so hardly
As prouder livers do.
Gui. Hail, heaven !
Arv. Hail, heaven !
Bel. Now for our mountain-sport. Up to yond hill,
Your legs are young : I'll tread these flats. Consider,
When you above perceive me like a crow,
That it is place which lessens and sets off ;
And you may then revolve what tales I have told you,
Of courts, of princes, of the tricks in war :
This service is not service, so being done.
But being so allowed. To apprehend thus
Draws us a profit from all things we see ;
5. "jet" {iet Fj) = swagger, "stoutly strut" (Milton), stalk proudly.
Steevens quotes from T. N., II, v, 36 : "how he jets under his advancing
plumes," and Skeat (s. v.) Ralph Roister Doister, III, iii, I2i (Sk. Specimens
of English) "Then must ye stately go, ietting \t^ and downe." "Jet" is
the older and purer form of jut.
6. "The idea of a giant was, among the readers of romances, who
were almost all the readers of those times, always confounded with that of
a ^zxz.ze!\."— Johnson.
9. "livers." Cf. Ill, iv, r42, 143 infra & K. H. 8, II, iii, 20.
12,13. See note on I, iv, 1^ supra. Possibly referring to an illusion
(more mental than optical) attributing greater size to an object on or near the
observer's horizon than to one beneath him. That is, one place "lessens,"
while a more favourable one "sets off" to advantage.
17. " allowed "= commended, alloue.
17,18. Cf. A.Y.L., II, I, 3,4 & 15—17.
94 Cymbeline. Ill, iii.
And often, to our comfort, shall we find
The sharded beetle in a safer hold
Than is the full-wing'd eagle. Oh ! this life
Is nobler than attending for a check :
Richer than doing nothing for a babe :
23 Babe Fj bauble Rowe badge Brae bi-ibe Hanmer.
23/^r Fi from Anon. conj. (1814) ap. Camb. Ed.
20. "sharded "= protected by shards, i. c, by the scales which cover
the wings at rest, but which are stretched out in flight : whence the flying
beetle is called "shard-borne," as if its shards discharged the function of
buoys. See M., Ill, ii, 43. Steevens aptly quotes from Gower's Confcssio
Amantis (lib. v, fol., 103 b. ).
He was so sherded all about,
It held all edge toole without.
meaning that Jason wore complete armour in his conflict with the dragon.
22. " Check" = order, direction. Cf. T. of S., I, i, 32.
23. Steevens suggests that this is an allusion to the custom, once
prevalent in England, for court-favourites to administer the estates of infant-
wards, and to neglect the children confided to their care. This interpretation
has been lately revived, through a well-grounded dissatisfaction with all the
proposed substitutes for Babe, the three best of which are given above. It
tells against this interpretation that the allusion, if intended, is very obscurely
expressed. A more serious objection, however, is to be found in the poverty
of Belarius ; for if richer is to carry a pecuniary sense, he is not " richer,"
but immeasurably poorer, than a courtier, who enjoys such a sinecure as the
text is supposed to allude to. One of the best of the substitutes seems to be
bable, in which literal form batible was usually written. It makes good
sense ; for, according to the usage of the time, it is applicable to any of the
insignia of state which were the badges or rewards of service at court : thus
the mace is often called a bauble, and the same term would equally apply to
a cognisance, star, medal, or wand. But while giving the emendation this
praise, it is but fair to note that in this very play we have both baubles and
bauble, spelt as in every other place of the folio in which those words occur :
and that the rhythm of the line in question pays dearly for this substitute.
Ill, iii. Cymbeline. 95
Prouder than rustling in unpaid-for silk :
Such gains the cap of him that makes him fine,
Yet keeps his book uncross'd : no life to ours !
Gui. Out of your proof you speak ; we poor unfledg'd
Have never wing'd from view o'th'nest, nor know not
What air's from home. Hap'ly this life is best,
If quiet life be best, sweeter to you 30
That have a sharper known, well corresponding
With your stiff age ; but unto us it is
25 gains Knight gaine Fj.
28 knoxu F2 knoivcs Fj.
Badge is an equally good substitute ; but Brae proposed it under the im-
pression that the word was sometimes spelt without the d (as was the case in
the name Burbadge), and that the second b in Babe was substituted for the g
reversed. But he did not adduce any passage in which badge was spelt bage:
though the word, so spelt, is in the Proinptoriiim Parvulorti?/i {circa, 1440).
Bribe the third substitute has found acceptance with several modern editors,
but scarcely gives as probable a meaning to the line as bauble or badge ; and
it is open to the same objection as the supposed allusion to wardship.
Halliwell (Fo. Ed.) rightly says, "Nothing that has been written on this
line is entirely satisfactory ; and the selection of a reading is, with our
present means of information, a matter of fancy rather than of judgment."
25,26. That is, his tailor salutes him, notwithstanding that in his ledger
the courtier's account is not cancelled. The consideration that the book is
the tailor's led Capell to alter " him " to ^em (t/ion), and the neglect of that
occasioned Singer to propose their for the last "his."
28,29. As "know" is the word in Fg, "knows" may safely be regarded
as a misprint of F^. " What air's from home " = what the air is like away
from home. The double negative, so common in Shakespeare, is still
occasionally found in modern literature, where, however, it is usually the
result of carelessness.
29. "hap'ly" = happily = haply. In Shakespeare "happily" is
commonly used in the sense of haply.
g6 Cymbeline. Ill, iii.
A cell of ignorance : travelling abed :
A prison for a debtor that not dares
To stride a limit.
Arv. What should we speak of
When we are old as you ? When we shall hear
The rain and wind beat dark December, how,
In this our pinching cave, shall we discourse
The freezing hours away ? We have seen nothing :
W"e are beastly : subtle as the fox for prey : 40
Like warlike as the wolf for what we eat :
Our valour is to chase what flies : our cage
We make a quire, as doth the prison'd bird,
And sing our bondage freely.
Bel. How you speak !
Did you but know the city's usuries.
And felt them knowingly : the art o'th'court,
As hard to leave as keep : whose top to climb
Is certain falling, or so slippery, that
The fear's as bad as falling : the toil o'th'war,
A pain that only seems to seek out danger 50
33 abedY„ abedY.^.
33 travelling 'Row Q 2 travailing Y^.
34 >r Pope ,orY-^.
35. " To stride a limit " = "To overpass his \>ovsvA.^' —Joluison. Cf.
W. T., Ill, ii, 107 :
before
I had got strength of limit,
meaning, before Hermione had got sufficient strength to walk abroad.
40. "beastly" = beast-like.
Ill, iii, Cymbeline. .gy
I'th'name of fame and honour, which dies i'th'search,
And hath as oft a slanderous epitaph
As record of fair act ; nay, many times
Doth ill deserve by doing well : what's worse,
Must court'sy at the censure. O boys ! this story
The world may read in me : my body's marked
With Roman swords ; and my report w-as once
First with the best of note. Cymbeline lov'd me ;
And when a soldier was the theme, my name
Was not far off : then was I as a tree 60
Whose boughs did bend with fruit; but in one night,
A storm, or robbery, call it what you will,
Shook down my mellow^ hangings, nay, my leaves.
And left me bare to weather.
Gui. Uncertain favour !
Bel. My fault being nothing (as I have told you oft)
But that two villains, whose false oaths prevail'd
Before my perfect honour, swore to Cymbeline
I was confederate with the Romans ; so
Followed my banishment ; and this twenty years
This rock and these demesnes have been my world, 70
Where I have liv'd at honest freedom, paid
More pious debts to heaven than in all
51. "name" seems to be the governing subs, though it is really
' fame and honour which dies in the search."
52,53. Cf./. C, III, ii, 80,81 and K. H. 8, IV, ii, 45,46.
54. " deserve " = earn (not merit).
55. That is, " bow to the judgment." Cf. I, ii, 9 supra.
O
98 Cymbeline. Ill, iii.
The fore-end of my time. But, up to th'mountains !
This is not hunters' language ! he that strikes
The venison first shall be the lord o'th'feast :
To him the other two shall minister ;
And we will fear no poison, which attends
In place of greater state. I'll meet you in the valleys.
How hard it is to hide the sparks of nature ! \Exeunt Guiderius
These boys know little they are sons to th'king, rt';/,^ Arviragus. So
Nor Cymbeline dreams that they are still alive.
They think they are mine ; and though train'd up thus meanly
I'th'cave wherein they bow, their thoughts do hit
The roofs of palaces ; and nature prompts them,
In simple and low things, to prince it much
Beyond the tricks of others. This Polydore, —
The heir of Cymbeline and Britain, who
The king his father call'd Guiderius, — Jove !
When on my three-foot stool I sit, and tell
The warlike feats I have done, his spirits fly out 90
Into my story : say, "Thus mine enemy fell,
81 still alive 'E(\. conj. alive ¥ ^.
83 -Li'licrcin they Warburton 7vhereoi! the Fj.
79. For contrast, cf. W. T., I, ii, 151.
81. S. Walker doubted, and with reason, whether Shakespeare's ear could
have tolerated this line, as in Fj. His proposed remedy was redistribution
of the lines ; but the suggestion recorded above seems preferable.
85,86. "prince it." Cf. JV. T., IV, iii (Perdita's speech, after Exit
Polixenes), "I'll queen it," and Ji'. H. 8, II, iii, 37 ("to queen it"). We
may here see a possible allusion to the performance of royal parts on the
stage. Cf. also M.forM., Ill, ii, loo ("dukes it").
Ill, iii & iv. Cymbeline. 99
And thus I set my foot on's neck " : even then
The princely blood flows in his cheek, he sweats.
Strains his young nerves, and puts himself in posture,
That acts my words. The younger brotlier, Cadwall,
Once Arviragus, in as like a figure,
Strikes life into my speech, and shews much more
His own conceiving. Hark ! the game is rous'd.
O Cymbeline ! heaven and my conscience knows
Thou didst unjustly banish me ; whereon,
At three, and two years old, I stole these babes.
Thinking to bar thee of succession, as
Thou reft'st me of my lands. Euriphile,
Thou wast their nurse, they took thee for their mother.
And every day do honour to her grave :
Myself Belarius, that am Morgan call'd,
They take for natural father. — The game is up. [Exit.
SCENE iv.
E7iter Pisanio and Imogen.
Imo. Thou told'st me, when we came from horse, the place
Was near at hand : ne'er long'd my mother so
To see me first, as I have now. Pisanio ! man !
Where is Posthumus? What is in thy mind.
That makes thee stare thus ? Wherefore breaks that sigh
From th'inward of thee ? One but painted thus
99. See II, iv, 57,58 supra, note.
103 — 105. See I, ii, 49 supra, note.
86 — 107. Belarius' soliloquy here serves the purpose of a chorus.
lOO Cynibeline, III, iv.
Would be interpreted a thing perplex'd
Beyond self-explication. Put thyself
Into a haviour of less fear, ere wildness
Vanquish my staider senses. What's the matter ?
Why tender'st thou that paper to me with
A look untender 1 If't be summer news,
Smile to't before : if winterly, thou need'st
But keep that count'nance still. My husband's hand !
That drug-damn'd Italy hath out-craftied him,
And he's at some hard point. Speak, man ! thy tongue
May take off some extremity, which to read
Would be even mortal to me.
Pisa. Please you, read ;
And you shall find me, wretched man, a thing
The most disdain'd of fortune.
Imogen reads.
Thy mistress, Pisanio, hath played the strumpet in my bed,
the testimonies tvhereof lies bleeding in me. I speak not out of
weak surmises, but from p7-oof as strong as my grief, and as certain
as I expect my revejige. That part thou, Pisanio, must act for
?ne, if thy faith be not tainted with the breach of hers : let thine
own hands take away her life ; I shall give thee an opportunity at
lo my Fi thy Pope.
15 out-craftied Y -^ out-cra/fcd Steevens.
22 /ye Rowe /yes F^.
8,9 Cf. T. of A., IV, iii, 34,35.
12. A quibble, very common with the writers of that time, though in-
sufferable now. Cf. H., I, iii, 103 — 109.
22. See note on II, iii, 20 supra.
Ill, iv. Cyinbeline. lOi
Milford Haveti ; she hath my letter for the purpose ; where, if
thou fear to strike, and to make me certain it is dotie, thou art the
pandar to her dishonour, and equally to me disloyal.
Pisa. What shall I need to draw my sword ? the paper 30
Hath cut her throat already. No ! 'tis slander,
Whose edge is sharper than the sword, whose tongue
Out-venoms all the worms of Nile, whose breath
Rides on the posting winds, and doth belie
All corners of the world. Kings, queens, and states,
Maids, matrons, nay, the secrets of the grave,
This viperous slander enters. What cheer, madam ?
Imo. False to his bed ! What is it to be false ?
To lie in watch there, and to think on him ?
To weep 'twixt clock and clock ? If sleep charge nature, 40
To break it with a fearful dream of him.
And cry myself awake ? That's false to's bed, is it ?
Pisa. Alas, good lady.
Imo. I false ! Thy conscience witness, lachimo.
Thou didst accuse him of incontinency ;
Thou then look'dst like a villain ; now, methinks
Thy favour's good enough. Some jay of Italy,
42 false F2 falfe F^.
31—37. Cf. M.forM., Ill, ii, 196— 199, and H., IV, i, 39—43.
38. The sense is not, as Mason thought — "What, is it to be false to
lie in watch there, and to think on him?" as is proved by the last line of
Imogen's speech, where "That's false to's bed" is her answer to her own
question — "What is it to be false?
47. "favour "= countenance.
47. "Some jay of Italy " = Some Roman courtesan, as I. 122. She
calls her supposed rival a jay, as being a dowdy, yet gaudily bedizened.
I02 Cynibeline. Ill, iv.
Whose mother was her painting, hath betray'd him.
48. " Whose mother was her painting." This extraordinary phrase has
been made the subject of much criticism, both in the way of interpretation
and emendation ; and Mr. J. O. Halliwell devoted a pamphlet to its
discussion and defense : {A Feiu Remarks on the Emendation, ' ' Who smothers
her with painting," in the play of Cymbdme, etc., 1852). Johnson's gloss is,
that she was " the creature not of nature, but of painting." In this sense
painting \a\^t be not improperly termed "her mother." Halliwell thus
expresses the general fact, as to the employment of so oriental a metaphor
by the dramatists of the time : "it was not unusual to refer to the external
adorniTient of the person figuratively as the parent, especially in cases where
the adornment was a prominent feature." He appositely quotes from this
very play, a passage in IV, ii, 81 — 83, and one from A. JV., I, ii, 60 — 62,
which is not quite in point :
younger spirits * * whose judgments are
Mere fathers of their garments.
The Camb. Edd. , in Note V to this play, offer the following paraphrase,
" whose mother aided and abetted her daughter in her trade of seduction ;"
to which they appear to have been led by a passage in A Mad World, my
Masters (Middleton), I, i :
See here she comes,
The close courtezan, whose mother is her bawd.
A correspondent, R. R. (Rev. R. Roberts), in Notes 6f Queries, 6th S.,
viii, 241, gives the following illustrative extracts :
" Finally, he would thou his equals with marvellous arrogance, and said that his arm
was his father, his works his lineage." — Don Quixote (1611), Shelton's translation, second
edition, 1652, i lib. pt. iv, cap. 24, p. 133.
"If Madam Newport should not be linkt with these Ladies, the chain would never
hold; for she is sister to the famous Mistress Porter and to the more famous Lady
Marlborough (whose Paint is her Pander)." — Neiues frotti the New Exchange ; or, the
Commonwealth of Ladies, "London, printed in the yeere of Women without Grace, 1650."
The latter of these might be thought to sustain the gloss of the Camb. Edd. :
but the resemblance is verbal only ((/. d., paint = pandar = bawd = mother
= painting) ; and by no ingenuity is it possible to make " whose mother
was her painting " mean " whose mother was her bawd." An interpretation,
far more probable than that of the Camb. Edd., or even that of Mr. Halliwell,
is suggested by the late Mr. A. E. Brae, in Notes and Queries, ist S., v, 484.
Ill, iv. Cymbeline, 103
Poor I am stale, a garment out of fashion ;
And, for I am richer than to hang by th'walls, 5°
I must be ripp'd ! to pieces with me ! Oh !
Men's vows are women's traitors. All good seeming,
By thy revolt, O husband, shall be thought
Put on for villainy : not born where't grows,
But worn a bait for ladies.
Pisa. Good madam, hear me,
Imo. True honest men being heard, like false ^neas,
Were in his time thought false ; and Sinon's weeping
Did scandal many a holy tear, took pity
He remarks —
" Rosalind reproving Phebe for her contempt of her lover, and in derision of her
^' ' ' Who might be your mother,
That you insult, exult, and all at once,
Over the wretched? A. V. L., Ill, v.
Mother is [here] directly used as a sort oy warranty of female beauty."
The portions in italics are not sustained by the text ; where it is quite plain
that "mother" is used as a warranty of female tenderness and gentleness.
Just so is the word employed in K. H. 5, IV, vi, 31 :
But all my mother came into mine eyes,
And gave me up to tears ;
that is, for sympathy with the Duke of York "all haggled over," embracing
dead Suffolk as he died. The hysterica passio was, on more special grounds,
called "the mother," as in K. L., II, iv, 56,57. Accordingly the word
stands for the characteristic strength or weakness of woman ; and in the
passage which is the subject of this note, it seems to stand for female vanity.
The courtesan had no mother-qualities but such as administered to her
vicious calling.
49. " a garment out of fashion. " Steevens quotes from Westward for
Smelts, 1620, "I like her as a garment out of fashion." Cf T. df C,
III, iii, 151,152.
50. "to hang by the walls " =«= to be himg up, as being out of use.
Cf A/, for M., I, ii, 171, & L. L. L., V, ii, song.
56—59. Cf A'. L., 11. 1548— 1561.
58. " took pity," that is, took away pity.
I04 Cymbeline. Ill, iv.
From most true wretchedness. So thou, Posthumus,
Wilt lay the leaven on all proper men : 60
Goodly and gallant shall be false and perjur'd
From thy great fail. Come, fellow, be thou honest :
Do thou thy master's bidding. When thou seest him,
A little witness my obedience. Look !
I draw the sword myself; take it, and hit
The innocent mansion of my love, my heart :
Fear not; 'tis empty of all things but grief:
Thy master is not there, who was, indeed,
The riches of it. Do his bidding, strike !
Thou may'st be valiant in a better cause ; 70
But now thou seem'st a coward.
Pisa. Hence, vile instrument !
Thou shalt not damn my hand.
lino. ^^'hy, I must die;
And if I do not by thy hand, thou art
No servant of thy master's. Against self-slaughter
There is a prohibition so divine,
That cravens my weak hand. Come, here's my heart :
Something's afore't ; soft, soft ; we'll no defence ;
Obedient as the scabbard. What is here ? \Takes Posthumus'
The scriptures of the loyal Leonatus letters from her bosom.
79 afore't Rowe afoot F^.
74—76. Cf. H., I, ii, 131,132.
77. Cf. V, iii, 46 infra.
78. That is, if you stab me, my bosom shall offer no more resistance
to the sword than would the scabbard.
79. "scriptures." Steevens is right in giving this word the theological
sense here.
Ill, iv. Cymbelme. 105
All turn'd to heresy ? Away, away, 80
Corrupters of my faith ! you shall no more
Be stomachers to my heart. Thus may poor fools
Beheve false teachers. Though those that are betray'd
Do feel the treason sharply, yet the traitor
Stands in worse case of woe. And thou, Posthumus,
That didst set up
My disobedience 'gainst the king my father,
And make me put into contempt the suits
Of princely fellows, shalt hereafter find
It is no act of common passage, but oo
A strain of rareness ; and I grieve myself,
To think, when thou shalt be disedg'd by her,
88 ?nakc Malone makes F^.
85,86. A former line—
From most true wretchedness. So thou Posthumus
forbids us to hastily disarrange this one, so as to begin line 86 with the words
" And thou Posthumus." It follows then that the words " That did'st setup "
may begin that line; and that either "my disobedience" ends it, or
that something has fallen out which once did so. The latter is countenanced
by the unseemly abruptness of Imogen's address, accusing Posthumus of
having occasioned her disobedience, without first stating that he had won her
affections, and so wrought upon her as to set her in rebellion to her father.
While it must be allowed that no mere rearrangement of the text as it has
comfe down to us is quite satisfactory, it should be remembered that there are
many short lines in this play; and that, e.g., in T. (Sr' C, II, ii, lO, and
III, iii, 171, we have just such short lines as "That did'st set up:" viz.,
"Yet, dread Priam," and "For beauty wit."
92. " disedg'd "= deprived of edge (as of a keen appetite). Steevens
aptly quotes H., Ill, ii, 259,260.
P
io6 Cymbeline. Ill, iv.
That now thou tirest on, how thy memory
Will then be pang'd by me. Pr'ythee, despatch :
The lamb entreats the butcher. Where's thy knife ?
Thou art too slow to do thy master's bidding,
When I desire it too !
Pisa. O gracious lady,
Since I receiv'd command to do this business,
I have not slept one wink.
Imo. Do't, and to bed then.
Pisa. I'll wake mine eyeballs out first.
Imo. Wherefore then
Didst undertake it ? Why hast thou abus'd
So many miles, with a pretence ? This place,
Mine action and thine own, our horses' labour,
The time inviting thee, the perturb'd court
For my being absent, whereunto I never
Purpose return ? Why hast thou gone so far
lOO eye-balls out first 1o\\.\iiQVi C0T\y eye-ballcs first Y ^ eye-balls blind fiirst
Hanmer.
93. "tirest on"= preyest upon, as a hawk pecking at its prey. See
3 K. H. 6, I, i, 269, and T. of A., Ill, vi, 4.
94. "pang'd." See K. H. 8, II, iii, 15.
100. Cf. Ill, iv, III infra. Steevens quotes from a manuscript play
called The Bugbears,
I double
Least for lacke of my slepe I shall watche my eyes oute.
Also from The RoaHng Girl, 161 1, "I'll ride to Oxford and watch out
mine eyes," &c. Cf. De/nocritus his Dreame, Peter Woodhouse. 1605.
(Grosart, p. 2).
and then I make no dout,
Thou'lt laugh no more, but weep thine eye-balles out. '
Ill, iv. Cymbeline. 107
To be unbent, when thou hast ta'en thy stand,
Th'elected deer before thee ?
Pisa. But to win time
To lose so bad employment ; in the which
I have consider'd of a course ; good lady,
Hear me with patience.
Ijho. Talk thy tongue weary ! speak !
I have heard I am a strumpet, and mine ear.
Therein false-struck, can take no greater wound,
Nor tent to bottom that. But speak !
Pisa. Then, madam,
I thought you would not back again.
Imo. Most like.
Bringing me here to kill me.
Pisa. Not so, neither ;
But if I were as wise as honest, then
My purpose would prove well. It cannot be
But that my master is abus'd
Some villain, ay, and singular in his art,
Hath done you both this cursed injury.
Imo. Some Roman courtesan —
Pisa. No, on my life.
I'll give but notice you are dead, and send him
Some bloody sign of it ; for 'tis commanded
I shall do so ; you shall be miss'd at court,
107,108. Cf. II, iii, 68 supra. Malone quotes from P. P., xix.
108, 114, & 136. "But"= only.
114. "tent"= probe. See T. &r C, II, ii, 16,17.
120,121. Cf. IV. T., II, i, 141,142.
io8 Cymbeline. Ill, iv.
And that will well confirm it.
Tmo. ^Vhy, good fellow,
What shall I do the while ? Where bide ? How live ?
Or in my life what comfort, when I am
Dead to my husband ?
Pisa. If you'll back to th'court—
Inw. No court, no father, nor no more ado 130
With that harsh, nothing noble, simple nothing ;
That Cloten, whose love-suit hath been to me
As fearful as a siege.
Pisa. If not at court,
Then not in Britain must you bide. Where then ?
131 nolhing noble ^A. con], noble Y^.
134,135 bide. Imo. Where then? F^ bide. Where then? Imo. Hanmer.
131. "nothing noble." The Editor is responsible for this necessary
correction; for Cloten could not be designated "noble" by Imogen.
Cf. Ill, vii, 56 infra.
134 et seq. Dr. Karl Elze, in A Letter to C. M. Ingleby, Esq. : Halle,
1885, p. 22, has this note on the arrangement of these speeches.
"Imogen cannot possibly be the speaker of the two lines following 'Where then? '
The original distribution of the lines, in my opinion, was this :
Pis. If not at court.
Then not in Britain must you bide.
/7no. Where then ?
Pi's. Hath Britain all the sun that shines ? Day, night.
Are they not but in Britain ?
Imo. In th' world's volume
Our Britain seems as of it, but not in't ;
In a great pool a swan's nest : prithee, think
There's livers out of Britain.
Pis. I am most glad
You think of other place."
Surely the two lines in question are of a piece with the rest of Imogen's
speech, and quite in her style ; and they belong naturally to her, if she is
not made to ask, "Where then ?" The simple cure is to assign those words
to Pisanio, instead of Imogen as in F^.
Ill, iv. Cymbeliiie. 109
Imo. Hath Britain all the sun that shines ? Day, night,
Are they not, but in Britain ? I'th'world's volume
Our Britain seems as of it, but not in't ;
In a great pool a swan's nest ; pr'ythee think.
There's livers out of Britain.
Pisa. I am most glad
You think of other place. Th'ambassador, 140
Lucius, the Roman, comes to Milford Haven
Tomorrow. Now, if you could wear a mind
Dark as your fortune is, and but disguise
That, which t'appear itself, must not yet be.
But by self-danger, you should tread a course
Pretty and full of view : yea, happily near
The residence of Posthumus ; so nigh, at least,
That though his actions were not visible, yet
Report should render him hourly to your ear
As truly as he moves.
142 fnind F^ mien Theobald.
137. "of it, but not in't." Mr. P. A. Daniel speciously proposes to
transpose "of it" and "in't;" as if the following line repeated the same
thought in a metaphor. But the "great pool" stands for the ocean, and
not for the world. Britain is "in the world's volume," but seems not to be
so, being divisa toto orbe by the sea, as a swan's nest in a great pool is
divided from the land.
136 — 138. Cf. Ill, i, 12,IT, stipra, note.
139. "livers." See III, iii, 9 supra, note.
145. "self-danger " = danger to itself. Johnson takes "that " in line
144 to be Imogen's rank, and understands "hereafter" after itself. Even
so the meaning is obscure. Cf., for contrast, I, vii, 120 and II, iii, 116
supra. This kind of compound is frequently an occasion of difficulty, as in
K. L., IV, ii, 62.
no Cymbeline. Ill, iv.
Imo. O for such means I 150
Though peril to my modesty, not death on't,
I would adventure.
Pisa. Well, then here's the point.
You must forget to be a woman : change
Command into obedience : fear and niceness,
The handmaids of all women, or, more truly,
Woman it pretty self, into a waggish courage :
Ready in gibes, quick-answer'd, saucy, and
As quarrellous as the weasel : nay, you must
Forget that rarest treasure of your cheek,
Exposing it (but oh, the harder heart ! 160
Alack, no remedy !) to the greedy touch
Of common-kissing Titan : and forget
Your laboursome and dainty trims, wherein
You made great Juno angry.
160 heart F^ hap Theobald (Warburton).
153,154. Mr. W. J. Rolfe rightly explains this to mean that Imogen is
to forget her rank, and assume the character of a servitor. — Friendly Ed.,
xviii, 226.
156. "it pretty self" "It "here is the older form of "its;" which
latter crept into English near the end of the seventeenth century. The
possessive "it" is usual in the early 4tos, and is found sixteen times in Fj,
viz., in eleven plays, in five of which it occurs twice. In K. J., II, i,
160,161, it is spelt both "yt" and "it." See Camb. ed., vol. Ill, p. 430,
note VII. The latter part of the note expresses a view peculiar to the late
]Mr. W. G. Clark, and which on the whole is indefensible. See Dr. W.
Aldis Wright's Bible IFord-Booi, 1884, p. 346. The possessive "its," on
the contrary, occurs ten times in Shakespeare ; but not once in King
James' Bible, 161 1, where "his," as in F^, commonly does duty for the
possessive of it.
162. Cf I K. H. 4, II, iv, 133,134 and H., II, ii, 182.
Ill, iv. Cymbeline. iii
Imo. Nay, be brief :
I see into thy end, and am almost
A man already.
Pisa. First, make yourself but like one.
Fore-thinking this, I have already fit
('Tis in my cloak-bag) doublet, hat, hose, all
That answer to them, would you, in their serving,
And with what imitation you can borrow 1 70
From youth of such a season, 'fore noble Lucius
Present yourself, desire his service, tell him
Wherein you're happy, (which will make him know
If that his head have ear in music) ; doubtless
With joy he will embrace you ; for he's honourable,
And, doubling that, most holy. Your means abroad—
You have me rich, and I will never fail
Beginning nor supplyment.
Imo. Thou art all the comfort
The gods will diet me with. Pr'ythee, away !
There's more to be consider'd, but we'll even 180
All that good time will give us. This attempt
I'm soldier to, and will abide it with
A prince's courage. Away, I pr'ythee !
171. " season "= degree of ripeness.
173. "happy." Steevens understands this epithet to mean "accom-
plished."
173,174. That is, "which will make him know whether he has an ear
for music."
182. "I'm soldier to " = "I have enlisted and bound myself to."—
Warburton.
112 Cynibeline. Ill, iv.
Pisa. Well, madam, we must take a short farewell ;
Lest, being miss'd, I be suspected of
Your carriage from the court. My noble mistress,
Here is a box : I had it from the queen ;
What's in't is precious : if you are sick at sea,
Or stomach-qualm'd at land, a dram of this
Will drive away distemper. To some shade, 190
And fit }-ou to your manhood ; may the gods
Direct you to the best !
Imo. Amen ! I thank thee. [Exeioit
SCENE V.
Enter Cymbeline, Queen, Cloten, Lucius, a?id Lords.
Cym. Thus far, and so farewell.
Luc. Thanks, royal sir.
My emperor hath wrote : I must from hence,
And am right sorry that I must report ye
My master's enemy.
Cym. Our subjects, sir,
Will not endure his yoke ] and, for ourself,
To show less sovereignty than they, must needs
Appear un-kinglike.
Ltic. So, sir. I desire of you
A conduct over land, to Milford Haven.
Madam, all joy befall your grace, and you.
9. "and you." These words appear to indicate Cymbeline. Possibly
tlie word " sir " has fallen out at the end of the line. The Globe ed. with
some plausibilit)^ assigns the words, " And you," to the Queen.
Ill, V. Cymbeline. 113
Cym. My lords, you are appointed for that office : 10
The due of honour in no point omit.
So farewell, noble Lucius.
Luc. Your hand, my lord.
Clot. Receive it friendly : but from this time forth
I wear it as your enemy.
Ltic. Sir, the event
Is yet to name the winner. Fare you well !
Cym. Leave not the worthy Lucius, good my lords,
Till he have crossed the Severn. Happiness !
\Exit Lucius, Q^c.
Queen. He goes hence frowning, but it honours us
That we have given him cause.
Clot. 'Tis all the better ;
Your valiant Britons have their wishes in it. 20
Cym. Lucius hath wrote already to the emperor
How it goes here. It fits us therefore ripely
Our chariots and our horsemen be in readiness.
The powers that he already hath in Gallia
Will soon be drawn to head, from whence he moves
His war for Britain.
Queen. 'Tis not sleepy business.
But must be looked to speedily and strongly.
Cym. Our expectation that it would be thus
Hath made us forward. But, my gentle queen,
Where is our daughter ? She hath not appear'd ^o
Before the Roman, nor to us hath tender'd
The duty of the day : — she looks us like
Q
1 1 4 Cymbeline. Ill, v.
A thing more made of malice than of duty —
We have noted it. Call her before us, for
We have been too slight in sufferance.
Queen. Royal sir,
Since the exile of Posthumus, most retir'd
Hath her life been ; the cure whereof, my lord,
'Tis time must do. Beseech your majesty,
Forbear sharp speeches to her ; she's a lady
So tender of rebukes that words are strokes, 40
And strokes death to her.
Enter a Messenger,
Cym. Where is she, sir ? How
Can her contempt be answer'd ?
Mess. Please you, sir.
Her chambers are all lock'd, and there's no answer
That will be given to th'loudest noise we make.
Queen. My lord, when last I went to visit her,
She pray'd me to excuse her keeping close ;
Whereto constrain'd by her infirmity.
She should that duty leave unpaid to you
Which daily she was bound to proffer : this
32 /(7£i/'j Johnson lookeY^.
39 strokes, Fj stroke;, Fj.
41 sir F, sirrah Ed. conj.
44 /^«</i?j/ Rowe lo'iudofY^ loutfst of C&^qW loud CoWiex l.
33. The king calls Imogen a "thing" twice in I, ii, 62 and Si, as he
had previously (56) called her husband. Cloten too is called a "thing,"
and in turn calls Imogen a " thing." It is a favourite word in this play.
35. " too slight in sufferance," that is, " too slack in putting up with it."
Ill, V. Cynibeline. 115
She wish'd me to make known, but our great court 50
Made me to blame in memory.
Cym. Her doors lock'd ?
Not seen of late ? Grant, heavens, that which I
Fear prove false. - [Exit Cymb.
Queen. Son, I say, follow the king.
Clot. That man of hers, Pisanio, her old servant,
I have not seen these two days.
Queen. Go, look after. [Exit Cloten.
Pisanio, thou that stand'st so for Posthumus,
He hath a drug of mine : I pray, his absence
Proceed by swallowing that, for he believes
It is a thing most precious. But for her.
Where is she gone } Haply despair hath seiz'd her ; 60
Or, wing'd with fervour of her love, she's flown
To her desir'd Posthumus : gone she is,
To death or to dishonour, and my end
Can make good use of either. She being down,
I have the placing of the British crown.
Enter Cloten.
How now, my son ?
Clot. 'Tis certain she is fled.
Go in and cheer the king : he rages ; none
Dare come about him.
Queen. All the better : may
This night forestall him of the coming day. [Exit Queen.
56. "Thou." A term of contempt, as in 1. 128 of this scene, where
Cloten changes the person as in this place.
ii6 Cynibeline. Ill, v.
Clot. I love and hate her ; for she's fair and royal, 7°
And that she hath all courtly parts more exquisite
Than lady, ladies, woman, from ever>' one
The best she hath ; and she, of all compounded.
Outsells them all. I love her therefore, but
Disdaining me, and throwing favours on
The low Posthumus, slanders so her judgment^
That what's else rare is chok'd ; and in that point
I will conclude to hate her, nay indeed,
To be reveng'd upon her. For when fools
Enter Pisanio.
Shall — Who is here ? What, are you packing, sirrah ? 80
Come hither. Ah, you precious pandar ! Villain,
"\^Tlere is thy lady ? In a word, or else
Thou art straightway with the fiends.
Pisa. O good my lord !
Clot. Where is thy lady ? or, by Jupiter,
I will not ask again. Close villain,
I'll have this secret from thy heart, or rip
Thy heart to find it. Is she with Posthumus,
From whose so many weights of baseness cannot
A dram of worth be drawn ?
Pisa. Alas, my lord !
71 that she liath Fj hath Ed. conj.
71,72. "Than any lady, than all ladies, than womankind."— ;/<7//«j<?«.
The phrase is elliptical, but is fully countenanced by a similar one, which
Toilet adduced from A. JV., II, iii, 190, "companion * * to any count,
to all counts, to what is man."
74,75. Malone compares this with T., Ill, i, 46 — 48.
85. "close" = secret, as in I, vii, 137 si//ra.
Ill, V. Cymbeline. wj
How can she be with him ? When was she miss'd ? 90
He is in Rome.
Clot. Where is she, sir ? Come nearer :
No farther halting : satisfy me home :
What is become of her ?
Pisa. O my all-worthy lord !
Clot. All-worthy villain !
Discover where thy mistress is at once,
At the next word : no more of " worthy lord."
Speak ! or thy silence, on the instant, is
Thy condemnation and thy death.
Pisa. Then, sir,
This paper is the history of my knowledge
Touching her flight. \Offering Posthumus' letter.
Clot. Let's see't ; I will pursue her, 1 00
Even to Augustus' throne ; or this, or perish !
Pisa. [ Aside?\ She's far enough ; and what he learns by this
May prove his travel, not her danger.
Clot. Humph !
Pisa. \^Aside.'\ V\\ write to my lord she's dead. O Imogen !
Safe mayst thou wander, safe return again.
Clot. Sirrah, is this letter true ?
103. Hiiiiiph ! ]o\\n?,ox\ Hiunh. Fj Hinn ! Dyce.
lOi. "or this or perish." That is, "I will do this, or perish in the
attempt." These words are assigned to Pisanio in Fj ; but by Rann
(Johnson conj.) to Cloten. The alteration, however, is not necessary to
explain Pisanio's subsequent account of this interview ; for Cloten had
already threatened him with death, if he did not disclose Imogen's where-
abouts. See III, V, 82,83 supra and V, v irifi-a, Pisanio's longest speech.
1 1 8 Cymbeline. Ill, v.
Pisa. Sir, as I think.
Clot. It is Posthumus' hand ; I know't. Sirrah, if thou
wouldst not be a villain, but do me true service, undergo those
employments wherein I should have cause to use thee with a
serious industry; that is, what villainy soe'er I bid thee do, to no
perform it, directly and truly, I would think thee an honest
man : thou shouldst neither want my means for thy relief, nor
my voice for thy preferment.
Pisa. Well, my good lord.
Clot. Wilt thou serve me ? For since patiently and con-
stantly thou hast stuck to the bare fortune of that beggar
Posthumus, thou canst not in the course of gratitude but be a
diligent follower of mine. AMlt thou serve me .^
Pisa. Sir, I will.
Clot. ■ Give me thy hand; here's my purse. Hast any of 120
thy late master's garments in thy possession 1
Pisa. I have, my lord, at my lodging, the same suit he
wore when he took leave of my lady and mistress.
Clot. The first service thou dost me, fetch that suit hither:
let it be thy first service ; go.
Pisa. I shall, my lord. \Exit.
Clot. Meet thee at Milford Haven (I forgot to ask him
one thing : I'll remember't anon) ; even there, thou villain
Posthumus, will I kill thee. I would these garments were
come. She said upon a time (the bitterness of it I now belch 130
130 — 133. Cf. II, iii, 130 — 133 supra. This threat of Cloten's is not
heard by Pisanio ; yet he afterwards (V, v) owns himself cognisant of
Cloten's deviUsh design.
Ill, V. Cymbeline. 119
from my heart), that she held the very garment of Posthumus
in more respect than my noble and natural person, together
with the adornment of my qualities. With that suit upon my
back will I ravish her : first kill him, and in her eyes : there
shall she see my valour, which will then be a torment to her
contempt. He on the ground, my speech of insultment ended
on his dead body, and when my lust hath dined (which, as I
say, to vex her, I will execute in the clothes that she so praised),
to the court I'll knock her back, foot her home again. She
hath despised me rejoicingly, and I'll be merry in my revenge. 140
Re-enter Pisanio.
Be those the garments ?
Pisa. Ay, my noble lord.
Clot. How long is't since she went to Milford Haven ?
Pisa. She can scarce be there yet.
Clot. Bring this apparel to my chamber; that is the second
thing that I have commanded thee. The third is, that thou
wilt be a voluntary mute to my design. Be but duteous and
true, preferment shall tender itself to thee. My revenge is now
at Milford ; would I had wings to follow it. Come, and be
true. \^Exit. 150
Pisa. Thou bidst me to my loss : for true to thee
136 instdtmcnt F2 insulment Fj.
147,148 duteous and true, S. Walker dutious, and true Y-^.
147,148. S. Walker's regulation of this passage seems inevitable in
view of what precedes (no, in): " to perform it [i.e., perform it] directly
and trul}', * * * thou shouldst neither want my means for thy relief, nor
my voice for thy preferment." There is no more need of "and," to introduce
the promise of preferment in the one passage than in the other.
I20 Cymbeline. Ill, v & vi.
Were to prove false, which I will never be
To him that is most true. To Milford go,
And find not her whom thou pursuest ! Flow, flow,
You heavenly blessings on her ! This fool's speed
Be cross'd with slowness ! labour be his meed ! \Exit.
SCENE vi.
Enter Imogen alone.
I/no. I see a man's life is a tedious one ;
I have tir'd myself, and for two nights together
Have made the ground my bed. I should be sick,
But that my resolution helps me. Milford,
When from the mountain top Pisanio shew'd thee,
Thou wast within a ken. O Jove ! I think
Foundations fly the wretched ; such I mean.
6. "within a ken" = in sight : a nautical phrase. "A ken" is used
by John Davies of Hereford, Microcosmos (Grosart, p. 38, col. i, 45) :
For let the least Necessity appeere
A ken from vs.
i. e., within our cognisance, or reach. " In ken " is common. Cf. Psyche,
Dr. Jos. Beaumont (Grosart, p. 44, st. 130) :
Were any Port in ken &c. ,
again (Ibid, p. 216, st. 13) :
And seeing now I am in ken of Thee,
The Harbour which enflamed my desire.
7. "Foundations fly the wretched." Steevens compares this with the
yEncid, v, 628,629 =
dum per mare,
Italiam sequimur fugientem, &c.
Schmidt sees in the phrase a punning allusion to charitable foundations.
Ill, vi. Cymbeline. 121
Where they should be reliev'd. Two beggars told me
I could not miss my way. Will poor folks lie,
That have afflictions on them, knowing 'tis
A punishment or trial ? Yes, no wonder,
When rich ones scarce tell true. To lapse in fulness
Is sorer than to lie for need ; and falsehood
Is worse in kings than beggars. My dear lord,
Thou art one o'th'false ones ; now I think on thee,
My hunger's gone ; but even before, I was
At point to sink for food. But what is this 1
Here is a path to't ; 'tis some savage hold.
I were best not call : I dare not call ; yet famine,
Ere clean it o'erthrow nature, makes it valiant.
Plenty and peace breeds cowards : hardness ever
Of hardiness is mother. Hoa ! Who's here ?
If anything that's civil, speak ; if savage,
Take, or lend. Hoa ! No answer ; then I'll enter.
Best draw my sword ; and if mine enemy
But fear the sword like me, he'll scarcely look on't.
Such a foe, good heavens ! \Exit.
21. II, iv, 9, 10 ^///r^.
24. "Take or lend." No explanation or emendation of this phrase
hitherto proposed is satisfactory. In view of what Imogen says at 11. 18,19,
Before I enter'd here, I call'd, and thought
To have begg'd or bought what I have took :
it looks as if " take" were intended to answer to "bought," and " lend " to
"begg'd." Lend certainly had and indeed still has sometimes the meaning
of afford ; as in the phrases, to lend a hand, to lend a charm to anything.
After all the sense is so doubtful that " speak " or " Take, or lend " might.
as Johnson proposed, change places; or "civil" and "savage" might do so.
27. " Such a foe," that is " Grant such a foe," as Pope actually reads.
R
122 Cymbeli?ie. Ill, vii.
SCENE vii.
Enter Belarius, Guiderius, and Arviragus.
Bel. You, Polydore, have prov'd best woodman, and
Are master of the feast : Cadwall and I
Will play the cook and servant, 'tis our match.
The sweat of industry would dry and die.
But for the end it works to. Come, our stomachs
Will make what's homely, savoury : weariness
Can snore upon the flint, when resty sloth
Finds the down pillow hard. Now peace be here,
Poor house, that keep'st thyself 1
Gui. I am throughly weary.
Ar-L\ I am weak with toil, yet strong in appetite.
Gui. There is cold meat i'th'cave ; we'll browse on that
Whilst what we have kill'd be cook'd.
Bel. Stay, come not in.
But that it eats our victuals, I should think
He were a fairy.
Gui. What's the matter, sir ?
Bel. By Jupiter, an angel ! or, if not,
An earthly paragon. Behold divineness
I. " woodman " = forester, or hunter. Cf. J/. U'., V, v (Falstaff's
third speech) and AI. for M., IV, iii (Lucio's third speech). Also li. of L.,
1. 580.
6—8. Cf. I K. H. 4, III, i, 9 ct scq.
7. " resty ■'= restive, stubborn in keeping one's place (Skeat). "I
hope he is better than a resty lade that will not stir out of the Stable."
The Court and the Country, Nicholas Breton, 1618, (Grosart, I, it. 9).
Ill, vii. Cynibelme. 123
No elder than a boy !
Enter Imogen.
Itno. Good masters, harm me not.
Before I enter'd here, I call'd, and thought
To have begg'd, or bought what I have took : good troth,
I have stol'n nought, nor would not, thougli I had found
Gold strew'd i'th'floor. Here's money for
My meat ; I would have left it on the board,
So soon as I had made my meal, and parted
With prayers for the provider.
Gtd. Money, youth ?
An'. All gold and silver rather turn to dirt,
As 'tis no better reckon'd, but of those
Who worship dirty gods.
Imo. I see you're angry ;
Know, if you kill me for my fault, I should
Have died, had I not made it.
Bel. Whither bound ?
Imo. To Milford Haven.
Bel. What's your name ?
Imo. Fidele, sir : I have a kinsman, who
Is bound for Italy ; he embarks at Milford,
To whom being going, almost spent with hunger,
21 for My meat Ed. conj. (in two lines) for my Meate, F,.
32 embarques YidXiXii&x embark^ d Y ^.
15-17. Cf. T., I, ii, 417—419.
32. "embark'cl " of Fj not only mars the sense, but makes Imogen say
what is absurd.
33. "being going," a pleonasm still provincially employed.
124 Cyiiibeline. Ill, vii.
I am fallen in this offence.
Bel. Pry'thee, fair youth,
Think us no churls, nor measure our good minds
By this rude place we live in. Well encounter'd !
'Tis almost night ; you shall have better cheer
Ere you depart, and thanks to stay and eat it.
Boys, bid him welcome.
Gui. A\'ere you a woman, youth,
I should woo hard but be your groom in honesty : 4°
I bid for you as I do buy.
Arv. I'll make't my comfort
He is a man : I'll love him as my brother ;
And such a welcome as I'd give to him
After long absence, such is yours. Most welcome !
Be sprightly, for you fall 'mongst friends. \Embracing her.
I/iio. [A side. ^ 'Mongst friends,
If brothers ! 'Would it had been so, that they
40 groom, in honesty: I Fj p-oovi. In honesty I Steevens 1778
(Tyrwhitt conj.).
41 as I do buy F^ as I bid you Ed. conj. as Fd buy Steevens 1778
(Tyrwhitt conj.) as Tld btiy Czxah. Ed.
40. The meaning is, "I should woo hard, but in honesty, if only to be
your groom." Cf. IV. T., IV, iv, 151, "You woo'd me the false way."
It is an outrageous violence to divorce "in honesty" from what precedes.
41. The letters of "I do buy" of F^ spell "bid you." The sense
then would be, " For that you are a man, I bid for your friendship, as I
bid you — /. e., as offering favours, not suing for them. " Bid" = invite.
No tolerable sense has ever been made of " I do buy," by tinkering the
second word.
43. " to him " that is " 10 my brother."
Ill, vii. Cymbeline. 125
Had been my father's sons ! Then had my prize
Been less, and so more equal ballasting
To thee Posthumus.
Bel. He wrings at some distress.
Gui. Would I could free't !
Arv. Or I, whate'er it be, 50
What pain it cost, what danger, gods !
Bel. Hark, boys. [Whispering aside.
Imo. Great men,
That had a court no bigger than this cave.
That did attend themselves, and had the virtue,
Which their own conscience sealed them, laying by
That nothing-gift of differing multitudes.
Could not outpeer these twain. Pardon me, gods !
I'd change my sex to be companion with them,
Since Leonatus's false.
Bel. It shall be so :
49. "wrings" = uses actions expressive of pain or sorrow : not quite the
same as writhes. The v. a. is common, while the v. n. is rare. Cf. M. A.,
V, i, 28 and K. H. 5, IV, i, 253.
55. " laying by " = putting aside, as of no account.
56. "That nothing-gift" is barren honour, or empty praise, which is
awarded by the mass, who lack the perception of true worth, and do not
agree about it.
56. "differing multitudes." Steevens quotes from 2 K. H. 4 (Ind.), 19 :
The still discordant, wavering multitud-e.
57- " outpeer "= surpass. Peer = equal, match. Cf. Memorials of
Mortality, Joshua Sylvester, st. 32 (Grosart II, 224) :
Presume not yet to peer thee with thy God.
126 Cymbeline. Ill, vii &; viii.
Boys, we'll go dress our hunt. Fair youth, come in : 60
Discourse is heavy, fasting : when we have supp'd,
We'll mannerly demand thee of thy story.
So far as thou wilt speak it.
Gui. Pray draw near.
Arv. The night to th'owl, and morn to th'lark, less welcome.
lino. Thanks, sir.
AriK I pray draw near. \Exeu7it.
.SCENE viii.
Elder hvo Roman Senators and Tribunes.
\st Sen. This is the tenor of the emperor's writ :
That since the common men are now in action
'Gainst the Pannonians and Dalmatians,
And that the legions now in Gallia are
Full weak to undertake our wars against
The fallen-off Britons, that we do incite
The gentry to this business. He creates
Lucius pro-consul ; and to you, the tribunes,
For this immediate levy, he commands
His absolute commission. Long hve Caesar !
Tri. Is Lucius general of the forces ?
2nd Sen. Ay.
62. Cf. 0., Ill, iii, 212, and England's Vanity, 1683, p. 83, "Who
(examining them of their countrey) was told," &c.
Ill, viii & IV, i. Cyinbeline, 127
Tri. Remaining now in Gallia ?
\st Se?i. With those legions
Which I have spoke of, whereunto your levy
Must be supplyant : the words of your commission
Will tie you to the numbers and the time
Of their despatch.
Tri. W'Q will discharge our duty. \Exeunt.
ACT IV.
SCENE i.
Enter Cloten alone.
Clot. I am near to'th'place where they should meet, if
Pisanio have mapp'd it truly. How fit his garments serve me !
W^hy should his mistress, who was made by him that made
the tailor, not be fit too ? The rather (saving reverence of the
word), for 'tis said a woman's fitness comes by fits : therein I
must play the workman, I dare speak it to myself, for it is not
vainglory for a man and his glass to confer in his own chamber.
I mean, the lines of my body are as well drawn as his ; no less
young, more strong, not beneath him in fortunes, beyond him
in the advantage of the time, above him in birth, alike con-
versant in general services, and more remarkable in single
14 supplyant Capell sitppliant Fj.
11,12, " single oppositions "= encounters in single combat. Malone
quotes from i A'. H. 4, I, iii, 99, " In single opposition hand to hand," &c.
128 Cymbeline. IV, i.
oppositions; yet this imperseverant thing loves him in my
despite. What mortahty is ! Posthumus, thy head, which now
is growing upon thy shoulders, shall within this hour be off, thy
mistress enforced, thy garments cut to pieces before thy face ;
and all this done, spurn her home to her father, who may,
happily, be a little angry for my so rough usage ; but my
mother, having power of his testiness, shall turn all into my
15 thy face F^ her face Hanmer (Warburton).
12. " imperseverant " = undiscerning. One who, as in I, vii, 31 — 37
supra, could not "partition [severance] make 'twixt fair and foul," would
actually be as imperseverant, as Cloten deems Imogen. No other meaning
fits the passage. Try it with relapsing, the sense in which Bp. Andrews
(1594) employs it, and it is quite out of place. Equally so are Schmidt's
glosses "giddy-headed, flighty, thoughtless." Forasmuch as it is the
contrary of " perseverant " it cannot have any of the shades of meaning of
" persevering." We are indebted to Dyce for assigning to " imperseverant"
its meaning in this passage, and to W. R. Arrowsmith [Notes and Queries,
April 23, 1853) for adducing, nio7-e siio, a vast collection of illustrative
passages, where perseverance means discernment, and pe^'severant means
discerning. The sense then is inductively established. Whether these
words acquired their meanings through a pre-supposed connexion with
perceive (for some translators, as Thomas Langley and Syrflet, spell the
former word perceiveratittce, and Golding, perceverance and pC7-ceyverance),
or whether the words were regularly formed from some derivative of a low
Latin verb, perseparare (Italian perseverare, French persevrer, the / being
lawfully degraded into v), may be held doubtful. One thing is clear,
that to follow Dyce, who in his edition of The Pinner of Wakefield
(Robert Greene), converts "perseverance" into perceivance, and in our
text spells "imperseverant," itnperceiverant, would be to "fall into the
ditch." But for the power of human perversity, one might predict that
the word " imperseverant" has been misspelt and misunderstood for the last
time.
17. "happily" = haply. See III, iii, 2g supra.
IV, i & ii. Cymbeline. 129
commendations. My horse is tied up safe. Out, sword, and
to a sore purpose ! Fortune, put them into my hand ! this is 20
the very description of their meeting-place, and the fellow dares
not deceive me. \Exit.
SCENE ii.
Enter Belarius, Guiderius, Arviragus, mid Imogen
from the Cave.
Bel. You are not well : remain here in the cave ;
We'll come to you after hunting.
Arv. [To Imogen.] Brother, stay here :
Are we not brothers ?
/mo. So man and man should be ;
But clay and clay differs in dignity,
Whose dust is both alike. I am very sick.
Gm. Go you to hunting ; I'll abide with him.
/mo. So sick I am not, yet I am not well ;
But not so citizen a wanton as
To seem to die, ere sick. So please you, leave me ;
19,20. Cf. (for contrast) If., Ill, iii, 88.
7 — 9. "So sick I am not, yet I am not well." So in T/ie Virgin
Martyr, V, i, we have "All within me is not well, and yet not sick."
For the next line, "citizen" is, as Schmidt says, "used adjectivally, =
cockney-bred, effeminate." Certainly if " citizen " was used as an adjective,
so that a citizen wanton had the force of two substantives united by a
hyphen, "so citizen a wanton" might have been colloquially employed.
Cf. "a cocker'd silken wanton," K. J., V, i, 70.
s
130 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
Stick to your journal course : the breach of custom
Is breach of all. I am ill, but your being by me
Cannot amend me. Society is no comfort
To one not sociable : I am not very sick,
Since I can reason of it : pray you trust me here,
I'll rob none but myself, and let me die
Stealing so poorly.
Gui. I love thee (I have spoke it),
How much the quantity, the weight, as much
As I do love my father.
Bel. What ? How, how ?
Arv. If it be sin to say so, sir, I yoke me
In my good brother's fault. I know not why
I love this youth ; and I have heard you say.
Love's reason's without reason. The bier at door,
And a demand, " Who is't shall die ? " I'd say,
" My father, not this youth."
Bel. O noble strain !
O worthiness of nature, breed of greatness !
Cowards father cowards, and base things sire base ;
17,18 the lucight, as vmch As Sir P. Perring the zueight as f/nich. As Fj,
10. "journal" = daily. This word occurs but in one other place in
Shakespeare, viz., M. for M., IV, iii (Duke's 3rd Speech after Re-enter
Provost) :
Ere twice the sun hath made his journal greeting.
20,21. Cf. V, V, 95 infra.
26,27. " Cowards father cowards . . . . contempt and grace. " See
34 — 36 of this scene. These are what, for want of a better term, may be
called choric reflexions. That is perhaps another in V, v, 106,107 infra.
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 131
Nature hath meal and bran, contempt and grace.
I'm not their father ; yet who this should be
Doth miracle itself, lov'd before me. \Aside.
'Tis the ninth hour o'th'morn.
Arv. Brother, farewell. 30
/;«<?. I wish ye sport !
Arv. You health ! So please you, sir.
Imo. These are kind creatures ! Gods, what lies I've heard !
Our courtiers say all's savage but at court ;
Experience, O thou disprov'st report !
Th'imperious seas breeds monsters ; for the dish,
Poor tributary rivers as sweet fish.
I am sick still, heart-sick. Pisanio,
I'll now taste of thy drug. \^Aside.
Gut. I could not stir him :
He said he was gentle, but unfortunate :
Dishonestly afflicted, but yet honest. 40
Arv. Thus did he answer me ; yet said hereafter
I might know more.
Bel. To th'field ! to th'field !
We'll leave you for this time ; go in, and rest.
Arv. We'll not be long away.
Bel. Pray be not sick,
For you must be our housewife.
31 Arvi. you health So please yoit Sir Fj Arv. yott health.
Imo. So please you, sir Tyrwhitt conj.
38. Almost all modern editions make Imogen "drink" or "swallow"'
here. But evidently she does nothing of the kind. She retires into the
cave to take Pisanio's drug.
132 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
Imo. ^^'ell or ill,
I am bound to you. \Exit into the cave.
Bel. And shalt be ever.
This youth, howe'er distrest, appears he hath had
Good ancestors.
Arv. How angel-like he sings !
Gui. But his neat cookery — he cut our roots in characters.
And sauc'd our broths as Juno had been sick, 50
And he her dieter.
Arv. Nobly he yokes
A smiling with a sigh ; as if the sigh
Was that it was, for not being such a smile :
The smile mocking the sigh, that it would fly
From so divine a temple, to commix
With winds that sailors rail at.
Gui. I do note
That grief and patience, rooted in him both.
Mingle their spurs together.
Arv. Grow patience —
50 saivct Fo san'c'st F^.
57 him Pope them F^.
58 Groiv patience, Rowe Grow, patience '. Theobald Groio patient, F^.
49. Steevens quotes from The Elder Brother, IV r
And how to cut his meat in characters.
58. The spurs are the larger roots of a tree, which appear partly above
ground. Cf. T., \ , i, 47,48,
by the spurs [have I] pluck'd up
The pine and cedar.
58 — 60. The construction seems to be "Grow patience, with the in-
creasing vine [that is, 'let patience grow with the growth of the vine']; and let
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 133
And let the stinking elder, grief, untwine
His perishing root — with the increasing vine ! 60
Bel. It is great morning ; come away ! Who's there ?
Enter Cloten.
Clot. I cannot find those runagates : that villain
Hath mock'd me : I am faint.
Bel. [Aside.] Those runagates ?
Means he not us ? I partly know him : 'tis
Cloten, the son o'th 'queen. I fear some ambush.
I saw him not these many years, and yet
I know 'tis he. We are held as outlaws ; hence !
Gui. [Aside.] He is but one ; you and my brother search
What companies are near : pray you away :
Let me alone with him. [Exeunt Belarius and Arviragus.
C/ot. Soft ! what are you 70
That fly me thus ? Some villain mountaineers ?
I have heard of such. What slave art thou ?
Gui. A thing
59 iinttvine F^ not twine Ed. conj.
71 villain mountaineers Malone villaine-Mountainers Fj.
the stinking elder (grief) untwine [from it] his perishing root." In this play
one must be prepared for an elliptical construction. Here the vine is
Fidele, or perhaps Fidele's heart : as in Shelley's Prometheus Unbound,
that vine
Which bears the wine of life, the human heart.
The sentiment is a small part of that which Laertes applies to Ophelia in
H., I, iii, II — 14.
61. "great morning." Cf. T. &^ C, IV, iii, i. The Clarkes explain
it as "broad day."
71, ICX3, 119, 368. " mountaineer " = brigand, robber. Cf T., Ill, iii, 44.
134 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
More slavish did I ne'er than answering
A " slave " without a knock.
Clot. Thou art a robber,
A law-breaker, a villain ; yield thee, thief !
Gui. To who ? to thee ? ^^'hat art thou ? Have not I
An arm as big as thine ? a heart as big ?
Thy words I grant are bigger, for I wear not
My dagger in my mouth. Say what thou art.
Why I should yield to thee.
Clot. Thou villain base, 80
Know'st me not by my clothes ?
Gui. No, nor thy tailor, rascal,
^\\\o is thy grandfather : he made those clothes.
Which, as it seems, make thee.
Clot. Thou precious varlet,
My tailor made them not.
82 grandfather : F., grandfather? F^.
72 — 74. That is, "I never did anything more slavish than answering
one who calls me a slave, without a knock, as I answer you. " Malone
aptly quotes from R. &'/., Ill, i, 130,
Now Tybalt, take the " villain " back again.
81. " Know'st me not by my clothes ? " It is doubtful whether Cloten
unmindful of his disguise, expects Guiderius to recognise him as the Queen's
son ; or whether he supposes a stranger would take him for Posthumus,
because he wears Posthumus' clothes. Perhaps Shakespeare committed
here the oversight he did in W. T. , IV, iv, where the shepherd is made to
say to his son, " His garments are rich, but he wears them not handsomely:"
the fact being that Autolycus was attired, not in Florizel's court suit, but
in "a swain's wearing." Such oversights were easily committed, and not
easily detected by an uncritical audience, who enjoyed the fun of the
situation, without being curious as to the consistency of the plot.
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 135
Gui. Hence then, and thank
The man that gave them thee. Thou art some fool ;
I am loath to beat thee.
Clot. Thou injurious thief,
Hear but my name, and tremble !
Gui. What's thy name ?
Clot. Cloten, thou villain.
Gui. Cloten, thou double villain, be thy name,
I cannot tremble at it ; were it toad, or adder, spider, 90
'T would move me sooner.
Clot. To thy further fear.
Nay, to thy mere confusion, thou shalt know
I am son to th 'queen.
Gui. I am sorry for't, not seeming
So worthy as thy birth.
Clot. Art not afeard ?
Gui. Those that I reverence, those I fear, — the wise.
At fools I laugh, not fear them.
Clot. Die the death !
When I have slain thee with my proper hand,
I'll follow those that even now fled hence.
And on the gates of Lud's town set your heads.
Yield, rustic mountaineer. \Exeimt fighting.
Re-enter Belarius atid Arviragus.
Bel. No companies abroad ? loc
Arv. None in the world : you did mistake him sure.
Bel. I cannot tell : long is it since I saw him,
But time hath nothing blurr'd those lines of favour
Which then he wore : the snatches in his voice
136 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
And burst of speaking were as his : I am absolute
'Twas very Cloten.
Arv. In this place we left them ;
I wish my brother make good time with him,
You say he is so fell.
Bel. Being scarce made up,
I mean to man, he had not apprehension
Of roaring terrors ; for defect of judgment no
Is oft the cause of fear.
Ill see, thy Theobald see thy F^.
105. "absolute" = sure, certain. Cf. Si)- John Oldcastle, I, i,
We lack but now Lord Cobham's fellowship,
And then our plot were absolute indeed.
Cf. "perfect," III, i, 71 supra, and IV, ii, 117 infra,
108. "scarce made up" = imperfectly developed; as we say — "not
all there." Cf. K. R. 3, I, i, 21, "scarce half made up." Cloten was
then but a youth, though now a middle-aged man.
no. " defect of judgment " = defective exercise of judgment ; not its
total absence. Cf C. , IV, vii, 39, and A. ^ C, II, ii, 54. Cloten's was
not the defect of those who, having judgment, exercise it defectively : he
had no judgment; "he consequently took no heed of terrors that roared
loud enough for men with their wits about them; and thus he braved
danger ; for it is the defective use of judgment (when men have any) which
is oft the cause of fear." (Private letter from Professor Sylvester, of Oxford,
to the Ed.) The text of F^ was first fully vindicated in Shakespeare, the
Alan and the Book, Part I, 1877, pp. 149 — 152. The following illustration
from Von Scheffel's Ekkehard, p. 185, applies to Cloten, notwithstanding
that his imbecility was not of the harmless type.
Gelinder Blodsinn ist dann und wann eine neidenswerthe Mitgift fiirs Leben : was
Andere schwarz schauen, scheint ihm blau oder griin, zickzackig ist sein Pfad, aber von
den Schlangen, die ira Gras lauern, merkt er nichts und tiber den Abgrund, in den der
weise Mann regelrichtig hineinsturtz, stolpert er hiniiber sonder Ahnung der Gefahr.
[Harmless imbecility is now and then an enviable endowment for life : that which
appears black to others, appears to him [the imbecile] blue or green ; his path is zigzag ;
but of the serpents which lurk in the grass he observes nothing ; and the pit, which the
wise man, who goes ' by line and by rule,' falls into, he stumbles over without anticipation
of danger.]
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 137
Re-enter Guiderius.
But see thy brother.
Gui. This Cloten was a fool, an empty purse,
There was no money in't ; not Hercules
Could have knock'd out his brains, for he had none :
Yet I not doing this, the fool had borne
My head, as I do his.
Bel. What hast thou done ?
Gtii. I am perfect what : cut off one Cloten's head,
Son to the queen, after his own report ;
Who call'd me traitor mountaineer, and swore
With his own single hand he'd take us in.
Displace our heads, where, thank the gods ! they grow,
And set them on Lud's town.
Bel. We are all undone.
Gui. Why, worthy father, what have we to lose.
But that he swore to take, our lives ? The law
Protects not us ; then why should we be tender
To let a piece of arrogant flesh threat us ?
Play judge and executioner all himself.?
For we do fear no law. What company
119 traitor fttountaineer'E.A. conj. Traitor, Mountaineer ¥ j^.
121 thank Steevens thanks F^.
127,128 himself? . . . nolawY^ himselfe? . . . the law Y-^.
117. "perfect." See note on III, i, 71 supra. Cf. W. T., Ill, iii,
119. " traitor mountaineer." This compound, with or without hyphen,
must follow "villain mountaineer," in 1. 71 supra.
122. Cf. W. T., IV, iv, 452.
126. "piece of flesh:" employed also in T. N., I, v, A/. A., IV, ii,
A. Y., Ill, ii, and R. &= /., I, i.
T
138 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
Discover you abroad ?
Bel. No single soul
Can we set eye on ; but in all safe reason 130
He must have some attendants. Though his humour
Was nothing but mutation, ay, and that
From one bad thing to worse, not frenzy, not
Absolute madness, could so far have raved
To bring him here alone ; although perhaps
It may be heard at court that such as we
Cave here, hunt here, are outlaws, and in time
May make some stronger head ; the which he hearing,
As it is like him, might break out, and swear
He'd fetch us in ; yet is't not probable 140
To come alone, either he so undertaking.
Or they so suffering : then on good ground we fear.
If we do fear this body hath a tail
More perilous than the head.
An'. Let ord'nance
Come as the gods foresay it : howsoe'er,
My brother hath done well.
Bel. I had no mind
To hunt this day : the boy Fidele's sickness
Did make my way long forth.
Gui. With his own sword.
Which he did wave against my throat, I have ta'en
131 hiinioiir T\itoh&\A honor Y-y^.
I33>I34- Cf. (for contrast) H., Ill, iv, 73.
140. "fetch usin." Cf. 1. 120 " take us in;" as we should say "run us in."
IV ii., Cyinbeline. 139
His head from him : I'll throw't into the creek 150
Behind our rock, and let it to the sea,
And tell the fishes he's the Queen's son, Cloten,
That's all I reck. {Exit.
Bel. I fear 'twill be reveng'd :
Would, Polydore, thou hadst not done't : though valour
Becomes thee well enough.
Arv. ^^'ould I had done't,
So the revenge alone pursued me : Polydore,
I love thee brotherly, but envy much
Thou hast robb'd me of this deed : I would revenges.
That possible strength might meet, would seek us through
And put us to our answer.
Bel. Well, 'tis done. 160
We'll hunt no more to day, nor seek for danger
\Vhere there's no profit. I prythee to our rock :
You and Fidele play the cooks ; I'll stay
Till hasty Polydore return, and bring him
To dinner presently.
Arv. Poor sick Fidele !
I'll willingly to him ; to gain his colour,
151 /, Fi Hie Ed. conj.
151. That is, "and let it go, &c., and tell," &c. Cf. 162 infra, "I
prythee to our rock," and 166 infra, "I'll willingly to him:" in all of
which places "to" = go to, just as in some others "forth" = come forth.
Cf. Ill, iv, 180 supra, " We'll even All " = we'll do even all.
158. That is "I would that such avengers, as any possible strength
could fairly encounter, might pursue us, to make us answer for this deed."
140 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
I'd let a parish of such Clotens' blood,
And praise myself for charity. \Exit.
Bel. Oh, thou goddess !
Thou divine nature ! thou thyself thou blazon'st
In these two princely boys : they are as gentle 17°
As zephyrs blowing below the violet.
Not wagging his sweet head ; and yet, as rough
(Their royal blood enchaf'd) as the rud'st wind.
That by the top doth take the mountain pine,
And make him stoop to th'vale. 'Tis wonder
That an invisible instinct should frame them
To royalty unlearn'd, honour untaught,
Civility not seen from other : valour
That wildly grows in them, but yields a crop
As if it had been sow'd : yet still it's strange iSo
What Cloten's being here to us portends.
Or what his death will bring us.
169 thou thy selfe F^ how thyself Vo'pt.
173 rud'st Fi rudest Camb. Ed.
167. That is " I'd let the blood of [i. e., bleed] a parish of Clotens " —
Cf. V, V, hifra (Belarius' third speech, after lachimo's confession). "Half
a parish of children" is quoted by Farmer from Fenner, and "a parish of
such children " by Reed from The Wits (Davenant). Nash has, in a well
known passage, "whole . . . hamlets of tragical speeches," where, of course,
" hamlets " carries double. See Greene's Menaphoii.
168 — 170. Cf III, iii, "Ji^ supra.
I74i 175- So Jeremy Taylor in Sermons preached at Golden Grove, 1651 —
" and made the highest branches stoop, and made smooth path for it on the
top of all its glories." Cf 2 Jv. H. 4, III, i, 22.
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 141
Re-enter Guiderius.
Gui. Where's my brother ?
I have sent Cloten's clotpole down the stream,
In embassy to his mother, his body's hostage
For his return. [Solenm music.
Bel. My ingenious instrument —
Hark, Polydore ! — it sounds : but what occasion
Hath Cadwal now to give it motion ? Hark !
Gui. Is he at home ?
Bel. He went hence even now.
Gui. What does he mean? Since death of my dear'st mother
It did not speak before. All solemn things 190
Should answer solemn accidents. The matter ?
Triumphs for nothing, and lamenting toys.
Is jollity for apes, and grief for boys.
Is Cadwal mad ?
Enter Arviragus bearing Imogen iii his arms., as dead.
Bel. Look, here he comes,
And brings the dire occasion in his arms.
Of what we blame him for.
185 ingenious Rowe ingentious F^.
185. F^ has "ingenuous" (for ingenious) which {pace the Clarkes)
occurs in one other passage in Shakespeare, viz., L. L. L., IV, ii, 80 —
" If their Sonnes be ingen«ous [/. e., with reversed «/] they shall want no
instruction." Here, too, the sense of the passage requires that "ingenuous"
should be ingenious.
192,193. This rhyming tag may be well compared with the couplet in
V, V, 106,107 iftfra. By the way, the former introduces some of the finest
poetry in this somewhat unequal drama ; among the finest in all Shakespeare.
142 Cymbeline. IV, ii
Arv. The bird is dead
That we have made so much on. I had rather
Have skipp'd from sixteen years of age to sixty :
To have turn'd my leaping time into a crutch,
Than have seen this.
Gni. Oh, sweetest, fairest lily !
My brother wears thee not one half so well
As when thou grew'st thyself.
Bel. Oh, melancholy !
Who ever yet could sound thy bottom ? Find
The ooze, to shew what coast thy sluggish crare
Might easilest harbour in. Thou blessed thing,
Jove knows what man thou mightst have made : but ay I
Thou diedst, a most rare boy, of melancholy.
How found you him ?
Arv. Stark, as you see :
Thus smiling, as some fly had tickled slumber.
Not as death's dart being laugh'd at : his right cheek
Reposing on a cushion.
Gui. Where ?
Arv. O'th'floor.
204 crare Steevens (Sympson conj.) care Fj.
205 Might easilest Y ,^ Mightst easilest Y ■^.
206 Ay I [i. e. , Ahr\ Nicholson conj. /, Fj.
204. " crare "= "a small trading vessel." Heath. Cf. The Captain
(B. & F.), I, ii,
let him venture
In some decayed crare of his own :
applied by the editor (Sympson) to the emendation of this passage.
IV, ii. Cymbeline. 143
His arms thus leagu'd ; I thought he slept, and put
My clouted brogues from off my feet, whose rudeness
Ansvver'd my steps too loud.
Gui. Why, he but sleeps :
If he be gone, he'll make his grave a bed :
With female fairies will his tomb be haunted,
And worms will not come to thee.
Arv. With fairest flowers
While summer lasts, and I live here, Fidele,
I'll sweeten thy sad grave : thou shalt not lack
The flower that's like thy face, pale primrose, nor 220
The azur'd harebell, like thy veins : no, nor
The leafy eglantine, whom not to slander,
Out-sweetened not thy breath : the ruddock would
With charitable bill {Oh bill, sore shaming
Those rich-left heirs, that let their fathers He
Without a monument) bring thee all this.
Yea, and furr'd moss besides, (when flowers are none)
To winter-ground thy corse.
Gui. Prythee have done,
And do not play in wench-like words with that
Which is so serious. Let us bury him, 210
And not protract with admiration what
222 leafy Collier leaf of Fj.
223 ruddock Hanmer raddocke F^.
228 winter-ground F^ twine around or wind around Ed. conj.
213. "clouted brogues " = heavy shoes patched with leather. Cf.
2 K. H. 6, ii, 195.
144 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
Is now due debt. To th'grave !
Arv. Say, where shall's lay him ?
Gui. By good Euriphile, our mother.
Arv. Be't so ;
And let us, Polydore, though now our voices
Have got the mannish crack, sing him to th'ground,
As once our mother : use like note and words,
Save that Euriphile must be Fidele.
Gtii. Cadwall,
I cannot sing : I'll weep, and word it with thee ;
For notes of sorrow, out of tune, are worse
Than priests and fanes that lie.
Arv. We'll speak it then. 240
Bel. Great griefs, I see, med'cine the less : for Cloten
Is quite forgot. He was a queen's son, boys \
And though he 'came our enemy, remember
He was paid for that : though mean and mighty rotting
Together have one dust, yet reverence,
That angel of the world, doth make distinction
Of place 'tween high and low. Our foe was princely,
And though you took his life as being our foe,
Yet bury him as a prince.
Gui. Pray you, "fetch him hither ;
Thersites' body is as good as Ajax 250
When neither are alive.
Arv. If you'll go fetch him.
We'll say our song the whilst. Brother, begin.
236 02ir Pope to our Fj.
IV, ii. Cyinbeline. 145
Gui. Nay, Cadwall, we must lay his head to th'easl ;
My father hath a reason for't.
Arv. 'Tis true.
Gui. Come on, then, and remove him.
Arv. So, begin.
SONG.
Gui. Fear tio more the heat o'th^sun,
Nor the fin-ious winter's rages ;
Thou thy tvorldly task hast done.
Home art gone and ta'en thy ivages :
Go/den tads and girls all must, 260
As chimney-sxveepers, come to dust.
Arv. Fear no more the froivn dth'great,
Thou art past the tyranfs stroke ;
Care fio more to clothe and eat ;
To thee the reed is as the oak :
The sceptre, learning, physic, must
All follow this, and come to dust.
Gui. Fear no more the lightning flash.
Arv. Nor th' all-dreaded thunderstone ;
Gui. Fear not slander, censure rash ; 270
Arv. Thou hast finished Joy and moan :
Both. All lovers young, all lovers must
Co7isign to thee, and come to dust.
272 lovers Fj loved Elze conj.
273 theeY^ //iw Johnson conj.
273. "consign" = subscribe, submit.
265. This line means "To thee weakness and strength are matters of
indifference:" q.d., "Care no more for sustenance or covering. Thy
own strength, as that of another, is henceforth of no consequence to thee."
V
146 Cynibeline. IV, ii.
Gui. No exorcisor harin thee,
Arv. Nor 710 luitchcraft charm thee !
Gui. Ghost unlaid forbear thee !
Arv. Nothing ill come near thee !
Both. Quiet conswnmation have ;
And renowned he thy grave.
Enter Belarius with the body of Cloten.
Gui. We have done our obsequies : come, lay him down. 2S0
Bel. Here's a few flowers, but 'bout midnight more :
The herbs that have on them cold dew o'th'night
Are strewings fit'st for graves. Upon their faces
You were as flowers, now wither'd ; even so
These herblets shall, which we upon you strew.
Come on ! away ! apart upon your knees !
The ground that gave them first has them again :
Their pleasures here are past, so is their pain. [Exeunt.
288 is Pope a7-e Fj.
278. Steevens quotes from K. E. Ill, 1596 (a play showing the
unmistakable hand of Shakespeare),
My soul will yield this castle of ray flesh
This mangled tribute, with all willingness
To darkness, consummation, dust, and worms.
Cf. also, H., Ill, i, 63.
283 — 285. This means — "Upon the faces of the herbs you were as
flowers now withered. Just so, these herblets, which we strew upon you,
shall serve for flowers." Throughout the passage "you" and "your"
consistently refer to the corses, and "their" and "these" to the herbs.
The commentators impute to Shakespeare an oversight of their own
creation. " Shall " is an extraordinary ellipsis ; and possibly a line is lost.
IV, ii. Cynibeline. 147
Imogen azvakes.
Yes, sir, to Milford Haven : which is the way ?
(I thank you) by yond bush ? Pray, how far thither? 290
Ods pittikins ! can it be six mile yet ?
I have gone all night — 'faith, I'll lie down and sleep.
But soft ! no bedfellow ? O gods and goddesses !
These flowers are like the pleasures of the world ;
This bloody man the care on't. I hope I dream :
For so I thought I was a cave-keeper,
And cook to honest creatures. But 'tis not so :
'Twas but a bolt of nothing, shot at nothing,
Which the brain makes of fumes. Our very eyes
Are sometimes hke our judgments, blind. Good faith, 300
I tremble still with fear ; but if there be
Yet left in heaven as small a drop of pity
As a wren's eye, fear'd gods, a part of it !
The dream's here still : even when I wake it is
Without me as within me : not imagin'd, felt.
A headless man ! The garments of Posthuraus !
I know the shape of's leg : this is his hand :
His foot Mercurial : his martial thigh :
The brawns of Hercules : but his Jovial face —
291. " Od's pittikins " = God's pity, used as a plural diminutive. It is
one of a large family of similar oaths. Cf. " God's bodykins, " in ZT. , II, ii, 554.
295. "on't " = of it. Cf. T., IV, i, 157.
298. This line is an accidental echo of a portion of the Greek paradox
referred to by Plato : Repub. V, 22.
308,309. Cf. H., Ill, iv, 56-58.
309. "brawns" = muscular arms. Cf. T. or' C, I, iii, 297, and
C, IV, V, 126.
148 Cymbelifie. IV, ii.
Murder in heaven ! How? 'tis gone. Pisanio, 310
All curses madded Hecuba gave the Greeks,
And mine to boot, be darted on thee ! thou,
Conspir'd with that irregulous devil Cloten,
Hast here cut off my lord. To \\r\tQ and read
Be henceforth treacherous ! Damn'd Pisanio
Hath with his forged letters — damn'd Pisanio —
From this most bravest vessel of the world
Struck the main top ! O Posthumus ! alas,
Where is thy head ? where's that ? Ay me ! where's that ?
Pisanio might have kill'd thee at the heart, 320
And left this head on. How should this be ? Pisanio ?
'Tis he and Cloten : malice and lucre in them
Have laid this woe here. Oh, 'tis pregnant, pregnant !
The drug he gave me, which he said was precious
And cordial to me, have I not found it
Murd'rous to th'senses ? That confirms it home.
This is Pisanio's deed and Cloten's, Oh !
Give colour to my pale cheek with thy blood,
That we the horrider may seem to those
Which chance to find us. O my lord ! my lord ! 330
314 Hast Pope Hath Fj.
327 Cloten's Pope Cloten Fi.
313. "irregulous" = unprincely, from regulus = a king's son; or
perhaps, lawless, excentric, from regula = a rule. If the latter, it should
be ' ' irregular. "
323. " pregnant "= quickly apprehended, evident. Cf. M. for M.,
II, i, 23.
IV, ii. Cymbelbie. 149
Mfiter Lucius, Captains, arid a Soothsayer.
Cap. To them, the legions garrison'd in GaUia
After your will, have cross'd the sea, attending
You here at Milford Haven, with your ships :
They are in readiness.
L71C. But what from Rome ?
CaJ). The senate hath stirr'd up the confiners.
And gentlemen of Italy, most v/illing spirits,
That promise noble service ; and they come
Under the conduct of bold lachimo.
Sienna's brother.
Ltic. When expect you them ?
Cap. With the next benefit o'th'wind.
Luc. This forwardness ^^o
Makes our hopes fair. Command our present numbers
Be muster'd : bid the captains look to't. Now, sir,
What have you dream'd of late of this war's purpose ?
Sooth. Last night the very gods shew'd me a vision :
(I fast, and pray'd for their intelligence), thus :
I saw Jove's bird, the Roman eagle, wing'd
From the spongy south to this part of the west,
334 are in Y ^ are heere in Y ^.
345 fast, and pray'd F^ fasting pray' d Hanmer.
335. "confiners" = borderers. Schmidt explains the word to mean
" inhabitants."
340. '-'benefit o' the wind." Cf. IV, iii, 42 infra & If., I, iii, 2.
345. " fast" = fasted.
347. "spongy south." Cf. J?, cf /., I, iv, 103, "dew-dropping
south. "
150 Cymbeline. IV, ii.
There vanish'd in the sunbeams ; which portends,
Unless my sins abuse my divination,
Success to th' Roman host.
Luc. Dream often so, 350
And never false. Soft, hoa ! what trunk is here
Without his top ? The ruin speaks, that sometime
It was a worthy building. How ? a page ?
Or dead, or sleeping on him ? But dead rather :
For nature doth abhor to make his bed
With the defunct, or sleep upon the dead.
Let's see the boy's face.
Cap. He's alive, my lord.
Luc. He'll then instruct us of this body. Young one,
Inform us of thy fortunes, for it seems
They crave to be demanded. Who is this 360
Thou mak'st thy bloody pillow ? or who was he
That, otherwise than noble nature did.
Hath alter'd that good picture ? What's thy interest
In this sad wrack ? How came to't ? Who is't ?
What art thou ?
Lmo. I am nothing ; or, if not,
Nothing to be were better. This was my master,
A very valiant Briton and a good,
That here by mountaineers lies slain. Alas !
There is no more such masters. I may wander
From east to Occident, cry out for service, 370
Try many, all good : serve truly : never
363,364. Cf. I, vii, 82,83 supra, for a merely casual resemblance.
IV, ii. Cyuibeline. 151
Find such another master.
Luc. 'Lack ! good youth :
Thou mov'st no less with thy complaining, than
Thy master in bleeding ; say his name, good friend.
Imo. Richard du Champ. [Aside.] If I do lie, and do
No harm by it, though the gods hear, I hope
They'll pardon it. Say you, sir ?
Zuc. Thy name ?
/;//<?. Fidele, sir.
Zuc. Thou dost approve thyself the very same :
Thy name well fits thy faith, thy faith, thy name.
Wilt take thy chance with me ? I will not say 380
Thou shalt be so well master'd, but be sure
No less belov'd. The Roman emperor's letters,
Sent by a consul to me, should not sooner
Than thine own worth prefer thee. Go with me.
Zmo. I'll follow, sir. But first, an't please the gods,
I'll hide my master from the flies, as deep
As these poor pickaxes can dig ; and when
With wild wood leaves and weeds I ha'strew'd his grave,
And on it said a century of prayers —
Such as I can — twice o'er, I'll weep and sigh, 390
And, leaving so his service, follow you.
So please you entertain me.
385 an't Fj ajiif/ F^.
375 — 377. This passage corroborates the view taken of III, vii, 32.
384. "prefer," as in 1. 397. See I, i, 6, siip7-a (note).
387. " poor pickaxes " = hands.
152 Cymbeline. IV, ii & iii.
Luc. Ay, good youth ;
And rather father thee than master thee. My friends,
The boy hath taught us manly duties : let us
Find out the prettiest daisied-plot we can,
And make him with our pikes and partizans
A grave. Come, arm him. Boy, he is preferr'd
By thee to us, and he shall be interr'd
As soldiers can. Be cheerful, wipe thine eyes :
Some falls are means the happier to arise. \Exeunt. 400
SCENE iii.
Enter Cymbeline, Lords, a7id Pisanio.
Cym. Again ; and bring me word how 'tis with her.
A fever with the absence of her son :
A madness, of which her life's in danger : heavens !
How deeply you at once do touch me. Imogen,
The great part of my comfort, gone : my queen
Upon a desperate bed, and in a time
When fearful wars point at me : her son gone,
397 he is Fj hces F^.
3 A madnesseY -^ Madness- Pope.
396. " partizans " = halberds or battle-axes, having two edges.
396,397, Lucius intends to bury Cloten ; but the event shows that,
after all, the corse is only superficially protected " from the flies." Is there
an oversight here ?
397. " arm him " = take him up in your arms.
IV, iii. Cymbeline. 153
So needful for this present. It strikes me, past
The hope of comfort. But for thee, fellow,
Who needs must know of her departure, and
Dost seem so ignorant, we'll enforce it from thee
By a sharp torture.
Pisa. Sir, my life is yours :
I humbly set it at your will \ but for my mistress,
I nothing know where she remains, why gone,
Nor when she purposes return. 'Beseech your highness.
Hold me your loyal servant.
Lord. Good my liege.
The day that she was missing he was here ;
I dare be bound he's true, and shall perform
All parts of his subjection loyally. For Cloten,
There wants no diligence in seeking him,
And will no doubt be found.
Cym. The time is troublesome :
We'll slip you for a season, but our jealousy
Does yet depend.
Lord. So please your majesty.
The Roman legions, all from Gallia drawn,
Are landed on your coast, with a supply
Of Roman gentlemen by the senate sent.
Cym. Now for the counsel of my son and queen :
II enforce F^ force Pope.
21. "And will," siibattdi "he " between these words.
22. " slip you " = let you escape : a term in coursing.
23. " Does yet depend " = Is still in a state of suspense.
W
154 Cymbeline. IV, iii.
I am amaz'd with matter.
Loi'd. Good my liege,
Your preparation can affront no less
Than what you hear of. Come more, for more you're ready ; 30
The want is, but to put those powers in motion
That long to move.
Cym. I thank you ; let's withdraw.
And meet the time as it seeks us. We fear not
What can from Italy annoy us, but
We gi'ieve at chances here. Away ! \Exeiint.
Pisa. I've had no letter from my master since
I wrote him Imogen was slain — 'tis strange :
Nor hear I from my mistress, who did promise
To yield me often tidings : neither know I
What is betide to Cloten, but remain 40
Perplex'd in all. The heavens still must work :
Wherein I am false, I am honest : not true, to be true.
These present wars shall find I love my country.
Even to the note o'th'king, or I'll fall in them :
All other doubts, by time let them be clear'd.
Fortune brings in some boats that are not steer'd. \Exit.
36 Vve had'HMWXitx I heard Y ■^.
40 betid Wzxiva^x betide F^.
42. Pisanio once more complains of the task, imposed upon him, of
serving two masters. Cf. Ill, v, 151 — 153, and a capital note in Dr. Elze's
Letter to C. M. Inglcby, p. 26.
44. " to the note o'th'king" = so that the king shall take note of my
patriotism. Cf. IV, iv, 20 infra "upon our note."
IV, iv. Cymbeline. 155
SCENE iv.
Efiter Belarius, Guiderius, and Arviragus.
Gtii. The noise is round about us.
Bel. Let us from it.
Arv. What pleasure, sir, find we in life, to lock it
From action and adventure ?
Gui. Nay, what hope
Have we in hiding us ? This way the Romans
Must or for Britons slay us, or receive us
For barbarous and unnatural revolts
During their use, and slay us after.
Bel. Sons,
We'll higher to the mountains, there secure us :
To the king's party there's no going : newness
Of Cloten's death (we being not known, not muster'd 10
Among the bands) may drive us to a render
2 find we F2 wefinde F^.
7 their F^ our Eccles conj.
4—7. The meaning is: — "If we hide here, the Romans must either
slay us out of hand, simply for being Britons, or receive us as revolters
against the king, making use of us for a time, and slay us after."
6. "revolts" = revolters. Cf. "revenges" in IV, ii, 158 sjipra ;
"encounters " in L. L. L., V, ii, 82 ; and " wrongs " in IC. /?. 2, II, iii, 128.
7. "During their v.se;" stibaitdi "of us:" q.d., "entertain us while
they use us."
II. "render" = return, account, stibs. (as we say, of income, profits,
or what not). Steevens quotes a similar use of the substantive from T.
of A., V, i, 152; and Malone points to the verb (similarly used) in V, v
infra (Imogen's speech introducing lachimo's confession).
156 Cymbeline. IV, iv.
Where we have liv'd ; and so extort from's that
Which we have done, whose answer would be death
Drawn on with torture.
Gui. This is, sir, a doubt
In such a time nothing becoming you.
Nor satisfying us.
Arv. It is not hkely,
That when they hear the Roman horses neigh,
Behold their quarter'd fires, have both their eyes
And ears so cloy'd importantly as now.
That they will waste their time upon our note,
To know from whence we are.
Bel. Oh, I am known
Of many in the army ; many years
(Though Cloten then but young), you see, not wore him
From my remembrance ; and, besides, the king
Hath not deserv'd my service, nor your loves,
Who find in my exile the want of breeding,
The certainty of this hard life ; aye, hopeless
To have the courtesy your cradle promis'd ;
17 the Rowe their F^.
18 Jires Fi _^/es Rann.
27 hard F^ heard F^.
17. This misprint (" their " for //i^) occurs elsewhere in Shakespeare;
e. g., A. &= C, II, ii, 213, where the error is usually uncorrected.
19. " cloy'd importantly " = stopt up with affairs of moment ; " now "
is here an adverb of time future ; as in V, iii, 74 infra, some understand
it of time past.
26. " Who " is relative to "you " understood.
27. " certainty " = certain consequence.
IV, iv. Cymbelme. 157
But to be still hot summer's tanlings, and
The shrinking slaves of winter.
Gui. Than be so,
Better to cease to be. Pray, sir, to th'army :
I and my brother are not known : yourself
So out of thought, and thereto so o'ergrown,
Cannot be question'd.
Arv. By this sun that shines
I'll thither ! What thing is it that I never
Did see man die, scarce ever look'd on blood,
But that of coward hares, hot goats, and venison ?
Never bestrid a horse, save one that had
A rider like myself, who ne'er wore rowel,
Nor iron on his heel ? I am asham'd
To look upon the holy sun, to have
The benefit of his blest beams, remaining
So long a poor unknown.
Gui. By heavens, I'll go !
If you will bless me, sir, and give me leave,
I'll take the better care ; but if you will not,
The hazard therefore due fall on me, by
The hands of Romans !
AriK So say I. Amen !
Bel. No reason I — since of your lives you set
35 is it F2 ist Fi.
29. "tanlings." This word is, apparently, peculiar to Shakespeare.
It means, of course, persons whose skin is sun-burnt.
35. "thing" — matter.
30
40
158 Cynibelme. IV, iv & V, i.
So slight a valuation — should reserve
My crack'd one to more care. Have with you, boys ! ^o
If in your country wars you chance to die,
That is my bed too, lads, and there I'll lie.
Lead, lead ! The time seems long : their blood thinks scorn
Till it fly out and shew them princes born. [Exeunt.
ACT V.
SCENE i.
Enter Posthumus alone.
Post. Yea, bloody cloth, I'll keep thee ; for I am wish'd
Thou shouldst be colour'd thus. You married ones,
If each of you should take this course, how many
Must murder wives much better than themselves
For wrying but a little ? O Pisanio,
1,2. "I am wish'd" = I am possessed by the wish. See Abbott's
Shakespearian Grammar, par. 294, and cf. I, vii, 35 ; II, iii, 14 and 136 ; II,
iv, 6 ; III, iv, 94 ; and III, iii, 20 supra. It is incredible, if " am " were a
press-error in F^, all the other folios should have reproduced it. The usual
reading, derived from Pope, " I wish'd," is insufferable bathos. The cloth
is the token referred to by Pisanio in III, iv, 123 — 125 supra, and was sent
in pursuance of Posthumus' injunction in III, iv, 28 stipra, though in
point of fact he never commanded Pisanio to send such a token.
2—5. Cf W. T., I, ii, 190—200.
5. "wry"ing" = stepping a.\\Ty. The neuter use of the verb is so rare,
that another instance of it has not yet been found. The transitive verb
occurs in An Eclogue between Willy and Wernocke, John Davies of Hereford,
line 219 (Grosart II, m p. 21, col. i).
They ivry their peace to noy each other then.
Steevens adduces three instances of it. The one from Sidney's Arcadia,
bk. I, 1633, p. 67, is somewhat in point : " that from the right line of
virtue are wryed to these crooked shifts." For others see Wright's j5/<^/^
Wordbook, 1884, p. 676.
V, i. Cyuibeline. 159
Every good servant does not all commands :
No bond, but to do just ones. Gods, if you
Should have ta'en vengeance on my faults, I never
Had lived to put on this : so had you saved
The noble Imogen to repent, and struck
Me, wretch more worth your vengeance. But, alack !
You snatch some hence for little faults ; that's love
To have them fall no more : you some permit
To second ills with ills, each elder worse,
And make them dread it, to the doer's thrift.
15 docrs^ Theobald dooer's Fj.
7. That is, no obligation [is he under] to do any save just ones.
9. " put on " = set on, instigate.
12 — 15. This passage, which tiie Cambridge Edd. pronounce "most
difficult and probably corrupt, " is thus paraphrased by Sir Philip Perring
(Hard Knots in Shakespeare, 1885, p. 353 — 354). "The gods permit some
to add sin to sin ; the older a man grows, the heavier the debt which stands
to his account, until at last the sum becomes so enormous, as to have a
chance of causing uneasiness and apprehension even to the most inveterate
transgressors, leading them at times to repentance and amendment of life :
this mode of dealing with evil-doers is said to be 'thrift,' that is, advantage
to them. For this signification of ' thrift ' we may quote M. of V., I, i, 175.
I have a mind presages me such thrift,
That I should questionless be fortunate."
To say the least, this is plausible ; but it fails to account for the particular,
"each." Why ^^ each elder worse," if "elder" is not the "ill" but the
ill-doer ? On the contrary, if "elder " is the elder born ill, say, of any two,
in fact any ill that is seconded, the words clearly describe a course of gradually
decreasing wickedness, which is just such a course as the gods, who wished
to reform a man by working upon his dread of the elder and worse trans-
gression, would suffer to continue. Between these two interpretations critici
judicent. If the text be not actually corrupt, it is certainly infelicitous ; and
the same may be said of many other passages in this singular composition.
i6o Cymbeline. V, i.
But Imogen is your own : do your best wills,
And make me blest to obey. I am brought hither
Among th' Italian gentry, and to fight
Against my lady's kingdom ; 'tis enough
That, Britain, I have kill'd thy mistress : peace !
I'll give no wound to thee ; therefore, good heavens,
Hear patiently my purpose. I'll disrobe me
Of these Itahan weeds, and suit myself
As does a Briton peasant : so I'll fight
Against the part I come with : so I'll die
For thee, O Imogen ! even for whom my life
1 6 Imogen F^ Judgment or Vengeance Watkiss Lloyd.
20 mistress : peace Y y^ fn I'stress-piece StSMnton.
24 Briton Theobald 2 Bntainc F^.
16. "But Imogen is your own." If the four lines of explanation
{12 — 15) be omitted, and also " But" in 1. 16, these words are in place, and
answer to "so had you saved the noble Imogen to repent ; " and there
would not be the least ground for suspecting the purity of the text. With
the insertion of those four lines, an element of doubt arises, which gives a
locus standi for Mr. Watkiss Lloyd's first and very clever emendation ; his
argument in support of which will be found in Azotes &" Queries, 6th S., xii,
342.
20. The text of Fj may be paraphrased thus: " I am brought hither
to fight against my lady's kingdom, but I will not do so. Let it suffice,
Britain, that I have already slain her, who is thy mistress also ('the
princess of this country,' V, ii, 3, infra). I cry peace : I'll give no
wound to thee." With Staunton's felicitous emendation the sense would
be the same ; but the paraphrase would end thus : ' ' Let it suffice that
1 have already killed thy chief-lady (' thy mistress-piece ' ), I'll give no wound
to thee." Notwithstanding its felicity, that emendation must be ruled out
of court, for it is unnecessary to the sense of the passage.
23. "suit" = attire, as opposed to "disrobe."
25. "the part " — the side of the Romans.
V, i & ii. Cymbeline. i6i
Is every breath, a death ; and thus, unknown,
Pitied, nor hated, to the face of peril
Myself I'll dedicate. Let me make men know
More valour in me than my habits show. 30
Gods ! put the strength o'th'Leonati in me :
To shame the guise o'th'world, I will begin,
The fashion, less without and more within. \Exit.
SCENE ii.
Enter Lucius, lachimo, and the Roman army at one door, and
the Briton army at another : Leonatus Posthumus followmg
like a poor soldier. They inarch over, and go oiit. Then enter
again in skirmish lachimo and Posthumus : he vanquisheth
and disar?neth lachimo, and then leaveth him.
lach. The heaviness and guilt within my bosom
Takes off my manhood : I have belied a lady,
The princess of this country, and the air on't
Revengingly enfeebles me ; or could this carle,
I a7id Fi of Collier conj.
27. " thus unknown." Cf. K. L., IV, i, r, where "and known " is the
most certain press error for "unknown."
30. " habits " = weeds, ordinary clothes.
1,2. See III, iii, 99 supra, note.
3. " on't" = of it. Cf. IV, ii, 295 supra, note.
4. "carle" = churl or carlot ; clown, lout, boor: a very common
word in this literature : e.g. —
And seemed to match a miching Carle
With such a pearlesse peece.
The Toys of att Idle Head, Nicholas' Breton (Grosart, I, a, p. 55, col. 2).
X
1 62 Cymbeline. V, ii & iii.
A very drudge of nature's, have subdued me
In my profession ? Knighthoods and honours, borne
As I wear mine, are titles but of scorn.
If that thy gentry, Britain, go before
This lout, as he exceeds our lords, the odds
Is that we scarce are men and you are gods. \Exit.
The battle conti?iues: the Britons fly : Cymbeline is taken : theft
enter to his rescue Belarius, Guiderius, and Arviragus.
Bel. Stand, stand ! we have th'advantage of the ground ;
The lane is guarded : nothing routs us, but
The villany of our fears.
Gui. 6^ AriK Stand, stand, and fight !
Enter Posthumus, and secotids the Britons. They rescue Cym-
" beline, and exeivit. Then enter Lucius, lachimo, aftd Imogen.
Luc. Away, boy, from the troops, and save thyself;
For friends kill friends, and the disorder's such
As war were hoodwink'd.
lach. 'Tis their fresh supplies.
Luc. It is a day turn'd strangely : or betimes
Let's re-inforce, or fly. [Exeunt.
SCENE iii.
Enter Posthumus aftd a Briton lord.
Lord. Cam'st thou from where they made the stand ?
Post. I did ;
Though you, it seems, come from the flyers.
Lord. I did.
V, iii. Cymbeline. 163
Post. No blame be to you, sir, for all was lost,
But that the heavens fought. The king himself
Of his wings destitute, the army broken,
And but the backs of Britons seen ; all flying
Through a strait lane, the enemy full-hearted.
Lolling the tongue with slaught'ring : having work
More plentiful than tools to do't : struck down
Some mortally, some slightly touch'd, some falling lo
Merely through fear, that the strait pass was damm'd
With dead men hurt behind and cowards living.
To die with length'ned shame.
Lord. Where was this lane ?
Post. Close by the battle, ditch'd and wall'd with turf,
Which gave advantage to an ancient soldier,
(An honest one, I warrant), who deserv'd
So long a breeding as his white beard came to,
In doing this for's country. Athwart the lane,
He, with two striplings, (lads more like to run
The country base than to commit such slaughter, 20
With faces fit for masks, or rather fairer
Than those for preservation cas'd, or shame),
6 Britons Hanmer Britaines F^.
12. See II, iii, 70 supra, note.
16,17. That is, wlio shewed by his valour that he had profited by
such long experience (in arms) as his long white beard cited.
20. "the country base " = the country game of prison-base, corrupted
into *' prison bars."
21. That is, "with fair faces, such as, by wearing masks, are preserved
from tanning, or guarded from impertinent curiosity."
164 Cyniheline. V, iii.
Made good the passage, cried to those that fled, —
" Our Britons' hearts die flying, not our men :
To darkness fleet souls that fly backwards. Stand !
Or we are Romans, and will give you that
Like beasts, which you shun beastly, and may save
But to look back in frown. Stand, stand ! " These three.
Three thousand confident, in act as many,
(For three performers are the file, when all 30
The rest do nothing), with this word " Stand, stand " :
Accommodated by the place : more charming
With their own nobleness, which could have turn'd
A distaff to a lance, gilded pale looks.
Part shame, part spirit renew'd, that some, turn'd coward
But by example (Oh ! a sin in war,
Damn'd in the first beginners), 'gan to look
24 hearts Fj harts Pope 2 (Theobald).
24, 2^. "Britons' hearts." Cf. line 46, where the allusion is to the
Romans' hearts. The meaning is, that the Britons were losing heart
(courage) ; and flying, lest they should lose their lives ; and they were thus
putting their souls in jeopardy.
25,26. One would have expected these lines to run —
To darkness fleet the souls that backward fly :
Stand ! or we're Romans, &c.
These frequent rudenesses are most instructive as land-marks.
27. "beastly." Cf. Ill, iii, op supra.
33,34. Cf a:/., V, ii, 156,157.
37. Here "'gan" is to be construed with "some turn'd coward," in
1. 35. The entire construction from 1. 27 is peculiar. " These three, more
charming with their own nobleness, than accommodated by the place
(though the mere place gave them an advantage), it so happened that some
who had only turned coward by the force of example, began to look the way
that they [the three] did," &c. A similar construction, as Mr. \V. J. Rolfe
V, iii. Cymbeline. 165
The way that they did, and to grin like lions
Upon the pikes o'th'hunters. Then began
A stop i'th'chaser : a retire : anon 40
A rout, confusion thick : forthwith they fly
Chickens, the way which they stoop'd eagles : slaves,
The strides they, victors, made, and now our cowards.
Like fragments in hard voyages, became
The life o'th'need : having found the back-door open
Of the unguarded hearts, heavens ! how they wound !
Some slain before, some dying ; some their friends
O'erborne i'th'former wave, ten chas'd by one.
Are now each one the slaughter-man of twenty :
Those that would die, or e'er resist, are grown -q
The mortal bugs o'th'field.
Lord. This was strange chance :
A narrow lane, an old man, and two boys.
42 stoop'd Rowe 2 sfopt Fj.
43 they victors Theobald the victors F^.
points out, occurs in Posthumus' former speech — "All flying through a
strait lane, the enemy lolling the tongue, having work more plentiful than
tools to do it, &c., it so happened that the strait pass was dammed with
dead men," &c.
44. Cf. " remainder biscuit. " A. Y. L., II, vii, 39.
49. "slaughter-man" = butcher. Cf. Greene's Groatsworth of Wit
(Shakspere Allusion-Books : Part I, 1874, p. 29), "should each to other
bee 3. slaughter-fnan." Also IC. H. 5, III, iii, 41 ; \ K. H. 6, III, iii, 75 ;
3 K. H. 6, I, iv, 169 ; and T. A., IV, iv, 58.
50. "or ere." See III, ii, 64 supra (note).
51. " mortal bugs" = objects of deadly fear. Cf 3 K. H. 6, V, ii,
2, where Warwick is a mortal "bug."
51,52. This is a phrase of stinging irony, and piques Posthumus.
1 66 Cyniheline. V, iii.
Post. Nay, do you wonder at it ? You are made
Rather to wonder at the things you hear,
Than to work any. Will you rhyme upon't,
And vent it for a mock'ry ? Here is one :
" Two boys, an old man (twice a boy), a lane,
Preserv'd the Britons, was the Romans' bane."
Lord. Nay, be not angry, sir.
Post. Lack ! to what end ?
Who dares not stand his foe, I'll be his friend : 60
For if he'll do as he is made to do,
I know he'll quickly fly my friendship too.
You have put me into rhyme.
Lord. Farewell : you're angry. \Exit.
Post. Still going ? This is a lord ! O noble misery,
To be i'th'field, and ask, what news ? of me.
To day, how many would have given their honours
To have sav'd their carcases ? took heel to do't,
And yet died too. I, in mine own woe charm'd,
Could not find death where I did hear him groan.
Nor feel him where he struck. Being an ugly monster, 70
'Tis strange he hides him in fresh cups, soft beds.
Sweet words ; or hath moe ministers than we
53 JJ'^" "wonder Ed. conj. not wonder F^.
64. " Still going ; " " i,e,^ you run away from me, as you did from the
enemy." S. Walker.
64. " noble misery" = miserable piece of nobility.
72. "moe" = more; but it was once the comparative of "many,"
as "more " was (and is) of "much."
V, iii. Cy)nbeline. 167
That draw his knives i'th'war. Well, I will find him :
Fortune being now a favourer to the Briton,
No more a Briton, I have resum'd again
The part I came in. Fight I will no more.
But yield me to the veriest hind that shall
Once touch my shoulder. Great the slaughter is
Here made by th'Roman ; great the answer be
Britons must take. For me, my ransom's death : 80
On either side I come to spend my breath ;
Which neither here FU keep, nor bear again.
But end it by some means for Imogen.
Enter two Captains and Soldiers.
1st Capt. Great Jupiter be praised ! Lucius is taken.
'Tis thought the old man and his sons were angels.
74 Fortune Brae conj. For Fj.
74 — 76. That is, "For [tune] being now favourable to the British arms,
I resume the part I came in, and am no longer a Briton." It would be a
mere platitude for Posthumus to say of himself, "For being now ( = just
now) a favourer to the Briton," &c., as if that were a reason for his
changing sides. A reason is required ; and as Death could not {pace Capell
and Arrowsmith), with any propriety of speech, be said to favoiir the side
he was sparing, one is driven to look for some other agent that could ; and
clearly it is " Fortune ; " and then, as the late Mr. A. E. Brae suggested to
me, we find half the wanted word already at the beginning of the line. As
to the place of the word, standing first in the line, and yet being a trochee,
cf. T. N., II, ii, 19, "Fortune forbid my outside have not charm'd her,"
and K. R. 3, V, iii, 78, "Fortune and victory sit on thy helm." Of
course "being" does duty as a monosyllable.
78. "once touch my shoulder" = arrest me, and take me prisoner.
It was the usual form of arrest in England in Shakespeare's time, and long
after.
78 — 80. Cf. W. T., I, ii, 452 — 454, for a somewhat similar argument.
1 68 Cymbeline. V, iii & iv.
2nd Capt. There was a fourth man, in a silly habit,
That gave th'afYront with them.
\st Capt. So 'tis reported ;
But none of 'em can be found. Stand ! who's there ?
Post. A Roman,
Who had not now been drooping here, if seconds
Had answer'd him.
2tid Capt. Lay hands on him, a dog ! 90
A leg of Rome shall not return to tell
What crows have peck'd them here ; he brags his service
As if he were of note ; bring him to th'king.
Enter Cymbeline, Belarius, Guiderius, Arviragus, Pisanio, and
Roman captives. The Captains present Posthumus to Cym-
beline, who delivers him over to a Gaoler.
SCENE iv.
Enter Posthumus atid Gaoler.
Gaol. You shall not now be stol'n, you have locks upon you :
So graze, as you find pasture.
2nd Gaol. Ay, or a stomach.
Post. Most welcome, bondage ; for thou art a way,
I think, to liberty; yet I am better
84. "silly" = simple ; Posthumus was in the dress of a peasant.
4 — 7. The gout is noted, both here and in M. for M., Ill, i, 29 — 31,
as the occasion of lingering illness. In the latter place the patient's heir is
supposed to curse it for not doing its work more speedily. In both places
the patient is supposed to prefer the illness, however severe or protracted,
to " a speedy death."
V, iv, Cymbeline. 169
Than one that's sick o'th'gout, since he had rather
Groan so in perpetuity than be cur'd
By th'sure physician, death, who is the key
T'unbar these locks. My conscience, thou art fetter'd
More than my shanks and wrists ; you good gods, give me
The penitent instrument to pick that bolt,
Then free for ever ! Is't enough I am sorry ?
So children temporal fathers do appease ;
Gods are more full of mercy. Must I repent 1
I cannot do it better than in gyves,
Desir'd more than constraint. To satisfy ?
8. "unbar " = withdraw the bolt of.
10. " the penitent instrument " = the instrument of a penitential death ;
which would work at once a penance for his sin, and a liberation for his
conscience and his life.
13. " repent" = do penance.
14. " gyves " = fetters, manacles: afterwards called "cold bonds:"
which were to Posthumus "desired more than constrained." Cf. L. C, 242:
Plaj'ing patient sports in unconstrained gyves.
15. "To satisfy ? " = Must I satisfy ? Must I make satisfaction ? i. e. ,
for the wrong I have done. The place of this verb recalls W. T., I, ii,
233.234- The sign of the infinitive is an archaism in this construction.
Posthumus has said, "Must I repent?" and it is quite according to the
usage of the time that in asking further, "Must I satisfy?" the governing
verb should be elided, and the dependent verb have the sign of the infinitive.
Shakespeare has instances of this construction, with /ei, may, ivould, -cvill,
jnighi'st, will rather, had rather, &c. e. g. :
Then let them all encircle him about,
And fairy-like to pinch the unclean Knight."— jJ/. W., IV, iv, 57.
i. e., let them pinch, &c.
She'll wed the stranger knight,
Or never more to view nor day nor night.— P., II, v, 16,17.
i. e., she will never more view, &c. Cf. also, P., IV, vi, 28. For other
Y
170 Cymbeline. V, iv.
If of my freedom 'tis the main part, take
No stricter render of me than my all.
instances, (all of which are given by Sir P. Perring, who does not notice
the relevant passage in this play, in an excellent note on this archaism
Hard Knots in Shakespeare, pp. 48 — 51), cf. T., Ill, i, 61 — 63;
C. of E., V, i, 14—16; A. IV., II, V, 52; 2 A". J/. 6, II, i, 127,128;
2 A'. H. 4, I, ii, 213; T. ir' C, V, i, 104; 0., I, iii, 191, and
Af. for M., Ill, ii, 287 — 290. The late Mr. A. E. Brae was the original
proposer of the ? after "satisfy;" but he also proposed the omission of
the sign of the infinitive, doubtless in temporary forgetfulness of so
common a construction. In this speech Posthumus is made to employ
the language of the early divines, in distinguishing the three parts (primar}^,
secondary, and "main") of Repentance, as the condition of Remission
of Sins. I. Attrition, or sorrow for sin: " Is't enough, I am sorry?"
2. Penance ; which was held to convert attrition into contrition, or godly
sorrow: "Must I repent?" 3. Satisfaction; "Must I satisfy?" And
he contends that as he has fulfilled the former requirements, he is willing
to fulfil the last — to pay his debt, for having taken Imogen's life, by giving
up his own.
16. "main part." Cf W. T., I, ii, 459; II, iii, 3,4.
17. "stricter" = more restricted, less exacting. That this is the
sufficient and necessary meaning of the word, is proved by what immediately
follows, and is in close connection with it. Posthumus tells the gods that
he does not ask them to remit the forfeit of his life, and be content with
less ; he wants no abatement from his entire debt. " That's not my desire :
for Imogen's dear life take mine." This interpretation was communicated
to me by the late Mr. A. E. Brae, in a letter dated " 3 July, 1854 ; " and
independently by Mr. Jos. Crosby, in a letter dated "July 25, 1876." The
Clarkes write (in their 3 vol. undated Ed.), "In explaining this condensed
and difficult passage, its interpreters have generally assigned the sense of
' no more severe ' . . . to the words ' no stricter ; ' but," they add, "we
believe that they here include the contrary' effect of ' no more restricted,' .
'no less.'" They adduce from Hooker the following illustration: "As
they took the compass of their commission stricter or larger, so their dealings
were more or less moderate." If for "include," we read "express "or
"convey," this note is unexceptionable. But when the writers go onto
assert that "no stricter" also includes the exact opposite of "no more
severe," viz. : " no less severe," on the ground that Posthumus admits the life
V, iv. Cymbeline. lyi
I know you are more clement than vile men,
Who of their broken debtors take a third,
A sixth, a tenth, letting them thrive again
On their abatement ; that's not my desire :
For Imogen's dear life take mine ; and though
'Tis not so dear, yet 'tis a life : you coin'd it :
'Tween man and man they weigh not every stamp :
Though light, take pieces for the figure's sake ;
You rather mine, being yours ; and so, great powers,
he offers for Imogen's to be " not so dear," and therefore an inadequate satis-
faction, and asks the gods to accept it representatively, as men pass light
money "for the figure's sake," it becomes the Editor's duty to point out
their mistake, i. Though Shakespeare, with intention, sometimes employs
words equivocally, it is too much to ask us to believe that in ojte place he
uses a word in two contradictory senses at once. 2. When Posthumus asks
the gods to accept his audit, and take his life for Imogen's, though it is not
worth so much as hers, he is not bespeaking their clemency : for (i) he has
already told them he will not have it — " that's not my desire ; " and (2) he
is offering his all, and the gods could not exact more, were they ever so
disposed to severity. The mistake is in confounding two very different
things (though in so difficult a passage such a mistake is venial) — viz.,
Posthumus' admission that what he offers (though his all) is inadequate :
and (what he distinctly repudiates) a prayer for indulgence on that account.
His frame of mind is not unlike that of the King, in IT. H. 5, IV, i.
Though all that I can do is nothing worth,
Since that my penitence comes after all
Imploring pardon.
Yes — but not indulgence.
18. "vile." Fi has vilde. The d was merely phonetic, like p and b
in other words.
21. "their abatement" = the abatement allowed by them.
26. " You rather mine, being yours " = You should the rather take mine,
since it is a coin from your own mint, and has your ' ' figure. "
1/2 Cymbeline. V, iv.
If you will take this audit, take this life,
And cancel these cold bonds. O Imogen !
I'll speak to thee in silence.
Solemn music. Enter, as ifi an apparition, Sicilius Leonatus,7^M<?/'
to Posthumus, a7i old mafi, attired like a warrior, leading
in his hand a7i ancient matron, his wife, afid mother to
Posthumus, with music before, them. Theft, after other music,
follow the two young Leonati, brothers to Posthumus, with
wounds as they died in the wars. They circle Posthumus
round as he lies sleeping.
Sicil. No more, thou thunder-master, show 30
Thy spite on mortal flies ;
With Mars fall out, with Juno chide.
That thy adulteries
Rates and revenges.
27. "take this audit" = accept the statement of account I offer: not
" make this audit," as Mr. P. A. Daniel (on a hint of W. Sidney ^Yalker)
would have it ; as if the gods had to make it. But Posthumus has made
out the account against himself, and offers per contra the life he has to
give as the " main part " of his repentance. He now asks the gods to
accept this audit, and in discharge to take his life.
28. "cancel these cold bonds " = knock off my fetters, and set me free,
but by my death. Cf M., Ill, ii, 49; and 2 N. K., Ill, i, "Quit me of
these cold gjn-es : " also I. 187 of this scene. These "cold bonds" are
the "strong links of iron" which Cassius says he can "shake off at
pleasure : " to which Casca replies, that " every bondman " can so " cancel
his captivity." J. C, I, iii, 94 — 102. Cf H., Ill, i, 67. The dream-
enterlude that follows is too poor a composition to be imputed to Shakespeare
at any period of his career, or on any dramatic ground ; and this play was
certainly drafted after the completion of Macbeth. Accordingly it is here
given in a smaller type than the rest of the text. It is at least open to
argument whether Posthumus's speech on awaking bears signs of Shake-
speare's hand. Certainly from " Sleep, thou has been a grandsire," to "As
good as promise," it is a very poor production. The remaining half-dozen
lines are not unlike Shakespeare.
V, iv. Cymbeline. 17-
Hath my poor boy done aught but well,
Whose face I never saw ?
I died, whilst in the womb he stay'd
Attending nature's law,
Whose father then (as men report
Thou orphans' father art) 40
Thou shouldst have been, and shielded him
From this earth-vexing smart.
Moth. Lucina lent not me her aid,
But took me in my throes;
That from me was Posthumus ripp'd,
Came crying 'mongst his foes,
A thing of pity.
Sicil. Great nature, like his ancestry,
Moulded the stuff so fair.
That he deserv'd the praise o'the world, ^O
As great Sicilius' heir.
\st Bro. When once he was mature for man.
In Britain where was he
That could stand up his parallel?
Or fruitful object be
In eye of Imogen, that best
Could deem his dignity ?
Moth. With marriage wherefore was he mock'd.
To be exil'd, and thrown
From Leonati seat, and cast 6q
From her his dearest one,
Sweet Imogen ?
Sicil. Why did you suffer lachimo.
Slight thing of Italy,
45 me was F^ my loomly Johnson conj.
50 deserved Y^ deserv'd Y-^.
45. Cf. M., V, viii, 15,16.
64. "slight thing." Cf. /. C, IV, i, 12, and IV, iii, 37. See III, v,
33 supra, note.
174 Cymbelifie. V, iv.
To taint his nobler heart and brain
With needless jealousy,
And to become the geek and scorn
O'the other's villainy?
2nd Bro. For this, from stiller seats we came,
Our parents and us twain, 70
That, striking in our countrj^'s cause,
Fell bravely and were slain.
Our fealty and Tenantius' right
With honour to maintain.
\st Bro. Like hardiment Posthumus hath
To CjTnbeline perform'd :
Then Jupiter, thou king of gods,
WTiy hast thou thus adjourn'd
The graces for his merits due,
Being all to dolours turn'd ? 80
Sicil. Thy crj-stal window ope, look out :
No longer exercise
Upon a valiant race thy harsh
And potent injuries.
Moth. Since Jupiter, our son, is good,
Take off his miseries.
Sicil. Peep through thy marble mansion, help !
Or we poor ghosts will cry
To th'shining synod of the rest
Against thy deity. 90
Bros. Help ! Jupiter, or we appeal,
And from thy justice fly.
81 look out F2 looke, looke out F^.
67. "geek and scorn." Cf. T. N., V, i, 351, "the most notorious
geek and gull."
75. "hardiment" = hardy service.
V, iv, Cymbeline. 175
Jupiter descends in tJumder arid lighiriing, sitting upon a?i eagle :
he throws a thunder-bolf. The ghosts fall on their knees.
/up. No more, you petty spirits of region low, •
Offend our hearing, hush ! How dare you ghosts
Accuse the thunderer, whose bolt, you know,
Sky-planted, batters all rebelling coasts ?
Poor shadows of Elysium, hence, and rest
Upon your never-withering banks of flowers.
Be not with mortal accidents opprest :
No care of yours it is, you know 'tis ours. lOO
Whom best I love I cross, to make my gift,
The more delay 'd, delighted. Be content.
Your low-laid son our godhead will uplift :
His comforts thrive, his trials well are spent.
Our jovial star reign'd at his birth, and in
Our temple was he married. Rise, and fade !
He shall be lord of lady Imogen,
And happier much by his affliction made.
This tablet lay upon his breast, wherein
Our pleasure his full fortune doth confine ; j jq
And so away: no farther with your din
Express impatience, lest you stir up mine.
Mount, eagle, to my palace crystalline.
\_Ascends.
Suit. He came in thunder; his celestial breath
Was sulphurous to smell : the holy eagle
96 coasts Fj /losfs Collier conj.
102. "The more delay'd, delighted." That is, the more the gift is
delayed, the more is it delightsome. Cf. O., I, iii, 290. The word
"delighted" in M. for M., HI, i, 121, cannot have the same meaning.
106. "fade," here meaning vade, vanish. See Dr. Grosart's excellent
note on these words in his ed. of John Davies of Hereford, vol. H, p. 38
(Glossarial Index).
176 Cymbeline. V, iv.
Stoop'd, as to foot us : his ascension is
More sweet than our blest fields : his royal bird
Prunes the immortal wing, and cloys his beak,
As whAi his god is pleas'd.
All. Thanks, Jupiter 1
Sicil. The marble pavement closes, he is en ter'd 120
His radiant roof : away ! and, to be blest,
Let us with care perform his great behest.
[ Vanish.
Post. Sleep, thou hast been a grandsire, and begot
A father to me ; and thou hast created
A mother and two brothers. But, O scorn !
Gone, they went hence as soon as they were born.
And so I am awake. Poor wretches, that depend
On greatness' favour, dream as I have done,
Wake, and find nothing. But, alas ! I swerve :
Many dream not to find, neither deserve, 130
And yet are steep'd in favours ; so am I,
That have this golden chance, and know not why.
What fairies haunt this ground ? A book ? O rare one,
Be not, as is our fangled world, a garment
Nobler than that it covers. Let thy effects
116. "foot." Steevens quotes from Herbert,
And till 'i\\e.y foot and clutch their prey.
118. "prunes." Steevens quotes from Drayton's Polyolbion, Song I,
Some sitting on the beach X.o prune their painted breasts.
118. "cloys " = cleys (Farmer), clees, claws. But no other instance
of "cloy" has yet been discovered.
134. "fangled." Halliwell quotes from Guilpin's 5',('/a/f//i£'/a, 1598,
It is Cornelius, that brave gallant youth,
Who is new printed to this fangled age.
Where "new " seems to be understood before "fangled."
V, iv. Cymbeline. lyy
So follow, to be most unlike our courtiers,
As good as promise. {ReadsJ]
Whenas a lion's whelp shall, to himself imkno7vn, without seeki?ig
find, a?id be embraced by a piece of tender air ; and when from
a stately cedar shall be lopt branches, which being dead many 140
years shall after revive, be joifited to the old stock, a?id freshly
grow ; then shall Posthiamts end his miseries, Britain be
fortunate, and flourish in peace and plenty.
'Tis still a dream, or else such stuff as madmen
Tongue, and brain not : either both or nothing,
Or senseless speaking, or a speaking such
As sense cannot untie. Be what it is,
The action of my life is hke it, which I'll keep
If but for sympathy.
Enter Gaoler.
Gaol. Come, sir, are you ready for death? leo
Post. Over-roasted rather : ready long ago.
Gaol. Hanging is the word, sir ; if you be ready for that
you are well cook'd.
Post. So I prove a good repast to the spectators, the dish
pays the shot.
Gaol. A heavy reckoning for you, sir. But the comfort is,
you shall be called to no more payments, fear no more tavern
bills, which are as often the sadness of parting as the procuring of
mirth : you come in faint for want of meat, depart reeling with
too much drink : sorry that you have paid too much, and sorry ^do
158 as often Camb. Ed. often Y ^
144,145. Cf. T., IV, i, 156,157.
178 Cymbelinc. V, iv.
that you are paid too much : purse and brain both empty : the
brain the heavier for being too Hght; the purse too Hght, being
drawn of heaviness. Of this contradiction you shall now
be quit. O, the charity of a penny cord ! it sums up thou-
sands in a trice : you have no true debtor and creditor but it :
of what's past, is, and to come, the discharge. Your neck, sir,
is pen, book, and counters ; so the acquittance follows.
Post. I ain merrier to die than thou art to live.
Gaol. Indeed, sir, he that sleeps feels not the toothache ;
but a man that were to sleep your sleep, and a hangman to help 170
him to bed, I think he would change places with his officer :
for, look you, sir, you know not which w\iy you shall go.
Post. Yes, indeed, do I, fellow.
Gaol. Your death has eyes in's head then : I have not seen
him so pictured : you must either be directed by some that take
upon them to know, or to take upon yourself that which I am
sure you do not know ; for jump the after-inquiry on your own
peril, and how you shall speed in your journey's end, I think
you'll never return to tell one.
Post. I tell thee, fellow, there are none want eyes to direct 180
them the way I am going, but such as wink, and will not use
them.
163 Of Globe Ed. Oh, of F^.
166 sir F2 sis Fj.
165. " debitor and creditor" = account book or ledger.
177. "jump the after-inquiry," &c. Cf. M., I, vii, 7, "I'd jump the
life to come." In both passages "jump" = drop out of account (not
"venture at" as Johnson, or "hazard" as Malone explains it): here, as
in the next scene, one is once more reminded of M. ; see V, v, infra.
V, iv. Cymbeline. 179
Gaol Why, what an infinite mock is this, that a man should
have the best use of eyes to see the way of bhndness : I am
sure hanging's the way of winking.
Enter a Messenger.
Mess. Knock off his manacles ; bring your prisoner to the
king.
Post. Thou bring'st good news : I am call'd to be made
free.
Gaol. I'll be hang'd, then. 19°
Post. Thou shalt be then freer than a gaoler ; no bolts for
the dead.
Gaol. Unless a man would marry a gallows, and beget
young gibbets, I never saw one so prone : yet, on my conscience,
there are verier knaves desire to live, for all he be a Roman :
and there be some of them too that die against their wills : so
should I, if I were one. I would we were all of one mind, and
one mind good ; O there were desolation of gaolers and gal-
lowses ! I speak against my present profit, but my wish hath a
preferment in't. \Exeimt. 2o<
183. "infinite mock." Cf. H., V, i, 204, "of infinite jest."
194. "prone" = forward (Halliwell) ; or rather, resolute, courageous,
forcible. Halliwell quotes from The Fall and Evil Success of Rebellion,
Wilfride Holme, 1539, "men /;w/<: and vigorous:" S tee vens from Sir A.
Gorges' Lucan, bk. vi,
Thessalian steeds
For use of war so prone and fit.
Cf. M.forM., I, ii, 187—189.
For in her youth
There is a prone and speechless dialect,
Such as moves men.
i8o Cymbdine. V, v.
SCENE V.
Enter Cymbeline, Belarius, Guiderius, Arviragus, Pisanio, a7id
Lords.
Cym. Stand by my side, you whom the gods have made
Preservers of my throne ! Woe is my heart,
That the poor soldier that so richly fought,
Whose rags sham'd gilded arms, whose naked breast
Stept before targes of proof, cannot be found.
He shall be happy that can find him, if
Our grace can make him so.
Bel. I never saw
Such noble fury in so poor a thing ;
Such precious deeds in one that promis'd nought
But beggary and poor looks.
Cym. No tidings of him ?
Pisa. He hath been search'd among the dead and living,
But no trace of him.
Cym. To my grief, I am
The heir of his reward, which I will add
To you, the liver, heart, and brain of Britain,
5 targes F^ targe Capell.
V, V. Steevens highly praises the artifice by which the dhiotiemcnt of
this play is effected with such completeness and regularity : adding, ." little
is found wanting to satisfy the spectator by a catastrophe which is intricate
without confusion, and not more rich in ornament than in nature." Did
Johnson here assist his co-editor to " endow his purpose with words " ?
9, lo. That is, promised nothing beyond his present poverty-stricken
condition.
II. "search'd" = sought {q.d. search'd for).
V, V. Cymheline. i8i
By whom, I grant, she lives. 'Tis now the time
To ask of whence you are : report it.
Bel. Sir,
In Cambria are we born, and gentlemen :
Further to boast were neither true nor modest,
Unless I add, we are honest.
Cym. Bow your knees !
Arise, my knights o'th'battle ! I create you 20
Companions to our person, and will fit you
With dignities becoming your estates.
E?ifer Cornelius and Ladies.
There's business in these faces. Why so sadly
Greet you your victories ? you look like Romans,
And not o'th'court of Britain.
Cor. Hail, great king !
To sour your happiness I must report,
The queen is dead.
Cym. Who worse than a physician
Would this report become ? But I consider.
By med'cine life may be prolong'd, yet death
Will seize the doctor too. How ended she ? 30
Cor. With horror, madly dying, like her life ;
16. " of " is relative to "whence," not \.o you understood.
17. "are born," for " were born " : after the French. Cf. V, i, i supra.
23. Cf. A'. R. 2, II, ii, 75, and A. &■ C, V, i, 50, "The business of
this man looks out of him. "
31. That is, dying madly with horror at the wickedness of her life :
and so her death was "like her life" — corresponded to it. In this
description we are strongly reminded of the death of Macbeth's queen.
M., V, ii, 36 — 38 et postea. See I, ii, 36 supra, note.
1 82 Cymbeline. V, v
Which, being cruel to the world, concluded
Most cruel to herself. What she confess'd,
I will report, so please you. These her women
Can trip me if I err, who with wet cheeks
Were present when she finish'd.
Cym. Prythee say.
Cor. First, she confess'd she never lov'd you : only
Affected greatness got by you, not you :
Married your royalty, was wife to your place :
Abhorred your person.
Cym. She alone knew this ; 4°
And but she spoke it dying, I w'ould not
Believe her lips in opening it. Proceed.
Cor. Your daughter, whom she bore in hand to love
With such integrity, she did confess
Was as a scorpion to her sight, whose life,
But that her flight prevented it, she had
36. "finished" = ended, i. e. died. Cf. 1. 411 infra.
43. "bore in hand" = made believe. "Whom" is objective to
"love;" and "me" is understood as objective to "bore in hand." Cf.
T. of S., IV, ii, 3; M. A., IV, i, 305,306; M. for M., I, iv, 51,52;
M., Ill, i, 81; and H., II, ii, 67. For other instances, take these: A
Warning for Fair Women, 1599 —
But Drury's wife did bear me still in liand,
and The Fair Maid of the Exchange (Heywood) —
For all thou hast bortie Bowdler still in hand ;
besides the five quoted in Shakespeare Hertneneiitics, 1875, pp. 42,43.
" Hold in hand " was also employed, e. g., TJie Je^v of Malta, III —
Both held in Jiand and flatly both beguiled.
The earlier form was " bear on hand," which is frequently employed in The
Fasten Letters and in Chancer.
V, V. Cymbeline. 183
Ta'en off by poison.
Cym. O most delicate fiend !
Who is't can read a woman ? Is there more ?
Cor. More, sir, and worse. She did confess she had
For you a mortal mineral, which, being took, 5°
Should by the minute feed on life, and hngering,
By inches waste you : in which time she purpos'd
By watching, weeping, tendance, kissing, to
O'ercome you with her show ; and in time.
When she had fitted you with her craft, to work
Her son into th'adoption of the crown :
But faihng of her end by his strange absence.
Grew shameless-desperate, open'd (in despite
Of heaven and men) her purposes : repented
The evils she hatch 'd were not effected ; so, Oo
Despairing, died.
Cym. Heard you all this, her women ?
Ladies. We did, so please your highness.
Cym. Mine eyes
Were not in fault, for she was beautiful ;
54 ht time F^ yes and in time Y .^ and so in titne Jervis conj.
58 shameless-desperate Capell shameless desperate Fj.
51,52. "lingering." That is, " lingering you." For '* linger," z'. li.,
see Sir John O Ideas tie —
And //«o-^r justice from her purposed end.
For "linger out," see 2 K. H. 4, I, ii, 265,266.
54 & 65. It is perhaps worth noting, that if " show " in 1. 54, and
"seeming" in 1. 65 change places, the sense and metre of both lines are
perfect.
1 84 Cytnbeline. V, v.
Mine ears that heard her flattery ; nor my heart,
That thought her like her seeming. It had been vicious
To have mistrusted her : yet, O my daughter,
That it was folly in me, thou may'st say.
And prove it in thy feeling. Heaven mend all !
Enter Lucius, lachimo, and other Roman prisoners, Leonatus
behind, and Imogen.
Thou com'st not Caius now for tribute : that
The Britons have ras'd out, though with the loss 7°
Of many a bold one ; whose kinsmen have made suit
That their good souls may be appeas'd with slaughter
Of you their captives, which ourself have granted :
So think of your estate.
Luc. Consider, sir, the chance of war : the day
Was yours by accident : had it gone with us,
We should not, when the blood was cool, have threaten'd
Our prisoners with the sword. But since the gods
Will have it thus, that nothing but our lives
May be call'd ransom, let it come : sufficeth, 80
A Roman with a Roman's heart can suffer :
Augustus lives to think on't : and so much
For my peculiar care. This one thing only
I will entreat : my boy, a Briton born,
Let him be ransom'd : never master had
A. page so kind, so duteous, diligent.
64 heard Y^ JiearcY-^.
70 raz'd Theobald rac^d F^.
V, V. CyDibeline. 185
So tender over his occasions, true,
So feat, so nurse-like : let his virtue join
With my request, which, I'll make bold, your highness
Cannot deny : he hath done no Briton harm, 90
Though he have serv'd a Roman. Save him, sir.
And spare no blood beside.
Cyvi. I have surely
Seen him : his favour is familiar to me.
Boy, thou hast look'd thyself into my grace.
And art mine own. I know not why nor wherefore
To say, " live, boy " : ne'er thank thy master : live !
And ask of Cymbeline what boon thou wilt.
Fitting my bounty and thy state, I'll give it :
Yea, though thou do demand a prisoner
The noblest ta'en.
Imo. I humbly thank your highness. io(
95 why nor 7vhercfore Rowe why, 'wJicrefoi's Fj.
87. "over his occasions." The sense is cleared up, as Mr. J. W. Rolfe
shows, by comparing this expression with IV. T., II, iii, 128, " tender o'er
his follies;" yet he speaks disparagingly of Schmidt's paraphrase, "so
nicely sensible of his wants " (?. e. of the master's wants), which is right
beyond question.
88. "feat" = featous, neat, nice, dainty: not, as Johnson explains it,
"ready, dextrous in waiting." Cf T., II, i, 273 for " feater ; " and Dr.
Henry More's Cupid's Conjlict (Grosart, p. 171) —
Thus haunted should I be with s[ic\\/eat fiends — (i. c. Cupids and Graces).
92,93. The Editor is responsible for the regulation of these lines, and
the punctuation of 1. 95. Hanmer has 1. 94 lit supra.
96. "To say 'live,' boy" = I should say "live," boy. Cf I, v, 6
supra: and see V, iv, 15 supra, note.
A A
1 86 Cymbeline. V, v.
Luc. I do not bid thee beg my life, good lad,
And yet I know thou wilt.
Imo. No, no, alack !
There's other work in hand : I see a thing
Bitter to me as death : your life, good master,
Must shuffle for itself.
Luc. The boy disdains me :
He leaves me, scorns me : briefly die their joys
That place them on the truth of girls and boys.
Cym. Why stands he so perplext 1 What wouldst thou, boy.?
I love thee more and more : think more and more
What's best to ask. Know'st him thou look'st on? speak ! no
Wilt have him live 1 Is he thy kin ? thy friend ?
Ltno. He is a Roman : no more kin to me
Than I to your highness ; who, being born your vassal,
Am something nearer.
Cym. Wherefore ey'st him so ?
Imo. I'll tell you, sir, in private, if you please
To give me hearing.
Cym. Ay, with all my heart,
And lend my best attention. What's thy name ?
Imo. Fidele, sir.
Cym. Thou'rt my good youth : my page,
lo8 Cym. Why stands he so perplexed? What Ed. conj. Why stands
he so perplex' d? Cym. What F^.
103. " a thing," that is Leonatus' jewel on the finger of lachimo.
loS. "Why stands he so perplex'd?" is naturally spoken (half-aside)
by the king. By this distribution, Lucius' speech ends, as it should, with
the rhyming tag.
V, V. Cymbeline. 187
I'll be thy master : walk with me, speak freely.
Bel. Is not this boy reviv'd from death ?
Arv. One sand another 120
Not more resembles : that sweet rosy lad
Who died, and was Fidele — what think you ?
Gui. The same dead thing alive.
Bel. Peace, peace ! see further : he eyes us not : forbear !
Creatures may be alike : were't he, I am sure
He would have spoke to us.
Gui. But we saw him dead.
Bel. Be silent, let's see further.
Pisa. It is my mistress !
Since she is hving, let the time run on
To good or bad.
Cym. Come, stand thou by our side :
Make thy demand aloud ! Sir, step you forth : j^o
126 sa'cv Rowe 2 sccY ^.
122. "Who died and was Fidele what think you?" If this be
an ellipsis, and not an imperfect text, the words ellided are " Is this he?"
or " Is this the same ? " At the same time one thing is obvious, and yet
overlooked by Hanmer and Capell : viz., Fidele, at the period of her visit
to the cave, was worn with ovei^-exertion, want of sleep and food ; and
subsequently sick unto death. Accordingly she could not, with any pro-
priety, be called a "sweet rosy lad." If these words apply to the page of
Lucius, standing before the speaker, another difficulty is introduced, and the
ellipsis has to be sought for between "lad " and "who." Strange to say,
the Clarkes, the Cambridge and Globe Edd. Dyce and Rolfe, swallow both
difficulties, and give us the impossible text of F^, as if " than he does "
betv/een " resembles " and "that " were the ellipsis intended by Shakespeare.
Whatever be the true reading, this at least should henceforth be scouted, as
in the last degree impro];al)le.
1 88 Cymbeline. V, v.
Give answer to this boy, and do it freely,
Or by our greatness, and the grace of it,
Which is our honour, bitter torture shall
Winnow the truth from falsehood ! On, speak to him!
Imo. My boon is, that this gentleman may render
Of whom he had this ring.
Post. ^^^hat's that to him ?
Cym. That diamond upon your finger, say,
How came it yours ?
lack. Thou'lt torture me to leave unspoken, that
W'hich to be spoke would torture thee.
Cym. How, me? 140
lack. I am glad to be constrain'd to utter that
Torments me to conceal. By villany
I got this ring : 'twas Leonatus' jewel,
\Miom thou didst banish : and, which more may grieve thee,
As it doth me, a nobler sir ne'er liv'd
'Twixt sky and ground. Wilt thou hear more, my lord ?
Cym. All that belongs to this.
lach. That paragon, thy daughter,
For whom my heart drops blood, and my false spirits
134 On, speak ¥ s One spcake Y ■^.
135 render Y-i^ tender Y^.
142 Torments Ritson conj. Which torments Y ^
135. "My boon" = the boon I ask of him. Cf. K. L., IV, vii, 10.
My boon I make it, that you know me not, &c.
The word is repeated from 1. 97.
139,140. "Instead of torturing me to speak, thou would'st (if thou
wert wise, or aware) torture me to prevent my speaking that, &c. " — Dyce.
V, V. Cytnbeline. 189
Quail to remember — Give me leave, I faint.
Cym. My daughter ? what of her ? Renew thy strength : 150
I had rather thou shouldst live, while nature will,
Than die ere I hear more : strive, man, and speak !
lacJi. Upon a time — ^ unhappy was the clock
That struck the hour ! — it was in Rome — accurst
The mansion where ! — 'twas at a feast — O, would
Our viands had been poison'd ! or at least
Those which I heav'd to head — the good Posthumus
(What should I say ? he was too good to be
Where ill men were, and was the best of all
Amongst the rar'st of good ones), sitting sadly, i5o
Hearing us praise our loves of Italy
For beauty, that made barren the swell'd boast
Of him that best could speak : for feature, laming
155 et seq. lachimo's narrative rather follows the story of Boccaccio
than the circumstances represented in I, v supra. See Prefatory Notes.
157. "Those which I heav'd to head. " A strangely uncouth expression.
Cf. JC. L., I, i, 93,94 ; but the passage is not quite in point.
163. "feature" = bodily form or make: so employed by Milton in
Par. Lost, ix, 272. S. Walker quotes from Chalmer's Uncertain Poets.
vi, 439. 2, "Praise of M. M. ,"
I wa.xed astonied to read xhs/caior [feature] of her shape.
Cowley, in Davideis, Bk. II, 34,35 (Grosart, Vol. II, p. 54) :
He saw, and strait was with Amazement strook,
To see the Strength, the Feature, and the grace
Of his young Limbs.
We now use " features " (in the bodily reference) mainly of the face, as the
French use " figure."
163. "laming" = disparaging. Cf. JV. T., V, ii, 3rd Gentleman's
3rd speech.
190 Cymbeline. V, v.
The shrine of Venus, or straight-pight Minerva,
Postures beyond brief nature : for condition,
A shop of all the qualities that man
164. "The shrine of Venus " = The embodiment, or personal presence,
of Venus. "Shrine" is so used of a living woman, in M. of V., II, vii,
40, and III, ii, 126 — 130; R. &' J., I, v, 95,96; and R. of L., 194.
Cf. also Victor Hugo's Notre- Dame de Paris, Li v. VI, Ch. i : where it is
said that on the entrance of the Egyptian girl, "chacune se sentit en
quelque sorte blessee dans sa beaute. " Warburton quotes from A. (Sr' C,
II, ii, 205,206 —
O'er picturing that Venus where we see
The fancy outwork nature.
This is absolutely in point, if, with him, we take "brief" in the next line
to mean "short of artistic perfection."
164. " straight-pight " = of an erect station ; well set up. " Pight " =
pitch'd, fixed, set. In a secondary sense it occurs in K. L., II, i, 67.
Grant White quotes from Mandeville, " a spere that \s pight into the erthe;"
and Holinshed tells how " Cassibellane ha.d pig/it into the Thames great
piles of trees." Minerva (Athena) was usually represented (after the colossal
bronze statue at Athens) standing erect, the left foot advanced, as if for
firmness of statue, bearing the regis, and brandishing a spear.
165. "Postures beyond brief nature " = Postures permanently rendered
in marble, which are only transient in nature. This is expressed by Shelley,
with characteristic obscurity, in Pi'ovietheus Unbound —
till marble grew divine,
And mothers gazing drank the love men see
Reflected in their race — behold and perish.
]5ut see note on 1. 164.
165. " condition " = character. Mr. Rolfe cites, most appositely,
M. of v., I, ii, 143.
166. "shop" = emporium, mart. lachimo might have been a mer-
chant, to employ this metaphor ; but Shakespeare could have cited Cicero,
for authority ; who tells his son Marcus, that in going to Athens and
Cratippus, " tanquam ad mercaturam bonarutn artium " {i.e., as to a mart
of good qualities), it would be scandalous for him (Marcus) to return thither
empty-handed. (De Offiiciis, III, 3.) Cf. Sonnet 2i„ 7.
V, V. Cynibeline. 191
Loves woman for : besides, that hook of wiving,
Fairness which strikes the eye.
Cyjti. I stand on fire.
Come to the matter.
lach. All too soon I shall,
Unless thou wouldst grieve quickly. This Posthumus, 170
Most like a noble lord m lovv., and one
That had a royal lover, took his hint.
And, not dispraising whom we prais'd, (therein
He was as calm as virtue), he began
His mistress' picture, which, by his tongue being made,
And then a mind put in't, either our brags
Were crack'd of kitchen trulls, or his description
Prov'd us unspeaking sots.
Cym. Nay, nay, to th'purpose.
Inch. Your daughter's chastity — there it begins—
He spake of her as Dian had hot dreams, 180
And she alone were cold ; whereat I, wretch.
Made scruple of his praise, and wager'd with him
Pieces of gold 'gainst this, which then he wore [Sheicnng the rhig.
Upon his honour'd finger, to attain
In suit the place of 's bed, and win this ring
By hers and mine adultery. He, true knight,
No lesser of her honour confident
167. "that hook of wiving" is that quality which seems cast forth
as a baited hook to catch a husband.
168. Cf. I, vii, 100—102.
177. "crack'd" = boasted; or it may have merely the sense of
•' uttered (with bluster)," as in the phrase fo crack a Joke.
192 Cymbeline. V, v.
Than I did truly find her, stakes this ring,
And would so had it been a carbuncle
Of Phabus' wheel ; and might so safely, had it 190
Been all the worth of 's car. Away to Britain
Post I in this design : well may you, sir.
Remember me at court, where I was taught
Of your chaste daughter the wide difference
'Twixt amorous and villanous. Being thus quench'd
Of hope, not longing, mine Italian brain
'Can in your duller Britain operate
Most vilely — for my vantage excellent.
And, to be brief, my practice so prevail'd
That I return'd with simular proof enough 200
To make the noble Leonatus mad,
By wounding his belief in her renown,
With tokens thus and thus : averring notes
Of chamber-hanging, pictures, this her bracelet,
(O cunning, how I got it ! ) nay some marks
Of secret on her person, that he could not
But think her bond of chastity quite crack'd,
I having ta'en the forfeit. Whereupon —
Methinks I see him now —
Post. Ay, so thou dost,
197 operate F, operarc Fj.
198 vilely F4 vildely F^.
205 got it F„ got F,.
199. "practice" = imposture, plot. Cf. W. T., Ill, ii, 168.
200. "simular" = probable. Cf. A'. L., Ill, ii, 54.
209. Cf. H., I, ii, 184.
V, V. Cymbeline. 193
Italian fiend ! Ay me, most credulous fool !
Egregious murderer ! thief ! anything
That's due to all the villains past, in being,
To come ! O, give me cord, or knife, or poison,
Some upright justicer ! Thou king, send out
For torturers ingenious ; it is I
That all th'abhorred things o'th'earth amend
By being worse than they ! I am Posthumus,
That kill'd thy daughter — villain-like I lie —
That caus'd a lesser villain than myself,
A sacrilegious thief, to do't. The temple
Of virtue was she ; yea, and she herself.
Spit, and throw stones, cast mire upon me, set
The dogs o'th'street to bay me : every villain
Be call'd Posthumus Leonatus, and be
Villany less than 'twas. O Imogen !
210 — 214. Staunton, mistaking the sense, would change "Ay me " to
"Give me;" z.^., Give me .... anything that's due, &c. But the
passage will bear the following paraphrase. " Alas ! that I should have
been such a credulous fool, and therein an egregious murderer, thief, or
any opprobrious epithet you may choose to give me, bad enough to describe
all past villany : — let some upright justicer doom me to the cord, the knife,
or poison."
214. "justicer." Cf. K. L., Ill, vi, 59, 23, and IV, ii, 79.
216,217. That is, whose loathsomeness makes all abhorred things less
loathsome. Cf. T. of A., IV, iii, 366; T. &• C, V, ii, 179.180, and
JV. T., Ill, ii, 190,191 ; cf. also 1. 163, where "laming" has the opposite
sense to " amend " in this.
220,221. Posthumus here appears to reflect upon lachimo's expression
in 1. 164. Imogen was, he asserts, not only the temple or shrine of virtue,
but virtue herself.
BB
194 Cymheline. V, v.
My queen, my life, my wife ! O Imogen,
Imogen, Imogen !
Imo. Peace, my lord ! hear — hear —
Post. Shall's have a play of this ? Thou scornful page,
There lie thy part. \^He throws herfrotti him : she falls.
Pisa. O gentlemen, help
Mine and your mistress ! O my lord Posthumus, 230
You ne'er kill'd Imogen till now. Help, help
Mine honour'd lady !
Cym. Does the world go round ?
Post. How come these staggers on me ?
Pisa. Wake, my mistress !
Cym. If this be so, the gods do mean to strike me
To death with mortal joy.
Pisa. How fares my mistress ?
Imo. O get thee from my sight :
Thou gav'st me poison : dangerous fellow, hence !
Breathe not where princes are.
Cym. The tune of Imogen !
227 hear, hear F^ here, here Collier conj.
233 come Rowe catne F^.
260 fro Fj from Rowe.
229. Here, as in T. N., Ill, iv, 140,141 ; A. V. L., II, vii, 137—139 ;
A. 6^ C, V, ii, 216 — 221 ; IV. T., Ill, ii, 37,38, stage-acting is spoken
of in association with the action represented.
234,235. Cf. P., V, i, 192—196.
238. "The tune of Imogen." Cf. IV, ii, 48 supra, and A' L., V, iii,
262,273. So Dickens, in The Battle of Life, 1846, p. 160 — " Oh Marion,
to hear you speak again." Had Imogen's voice the charm of Cordelia's?
V, V. Cyrnbeline. 195
Pisa. Lady, the gods throw stones of sulphur on me, if
That box I gave you was not thought by me 240
A precious thing. I had it from the queen.
Cym. New matter still.
Imo. It poison'd me.
Cor. O gods !
I left out one thing which the queen confest.
Which must approve thee honest. \To Pisanio.\ " If Pisanio
Have (said she) given his mistress that confection
Which I gave him for cordial, she is serv'd
As I would serve a rat."
Cym. What's this, Cornelius ?
Cor. The queen, sir, very oft importun'd me
To temper poisons for her, still pretending
The satisfaction of her knowledge only, 2co
In killing creatures vile, as cats and dogs
Of no esteem. I, dreading that her purpose
Was of more danger, did compound for her
A certain stuff, which, being ta'en, would cease
The present power of life, but in short time
All offices of nature should again
239. Is it not possible that the compositor caught " stones " from I. 222,
where Posthumus says — "Spit, and throw stones, cast mire upon me.'"
Capell, very awkwardly, omits "box " from 1. 241 in order to take " Lady"
into it, without detriment to the metre. " Stones of sulphur " would mean
" thunder-stones."
243,244. " I left out," &c. = I omitted to state a circumstance which
the Queen confessed on her death-bed, and which, known, must approve
thee, Pisanio, honest : it was this, &c. "Which I gave her /or a cordial"
are the words that approve him honest.
196 Cynibeline. V, v.
Do their due functions. Have you ta'en of it ?
Inw. Most like I did, for I was dead.
Bel. My boys,
There was our error.
Gilt. This is sure Fidele.
Imo. Why did you throw your wedded lady fro you ? 260
Think that you are upon a rock, and now
Throw me again.
Post. Hang there like fruit, my soul.
Till the tree die.
Cym. How now, my flesh, my child !
What, mak'st thou me a dullard in this act ?
Wilt thou not speak to me ?
Imo. Your blessing, sir.
Bel. Though you did love this youth, I blame ye not :
You had a motive for't.
Cym. IVIy tears that fall
Prove holy-water on thee ! Imogen,
Thy mother's dead.
Imo. I am sorry for't, my lord.
261. " Think you're upon a rock. " " Rock " is here usually interpreted
as a synonym for cliff or precipice. But it is surely enough to take it
to mean rocky eminence, as a man who in shipwreck has fovmd such a
refuse. Cf. the Ewneiiides, 532, ovh^ vnipOkovr' uKpav. That Shakespeare
meant this is proved by his recurrence to the nautical metaphor in 1. 393
infra: " Posthumus anchors on Imogen." It is there he has found
anchorage for his tempest-toss'd ship ; and with this in mind she very
touchingly adds to the above — "Now throw me from you" — i.e., cast
yourself once more adrift. It is only a precisianist who expects to find such
a metaphor running on all fours.
262. Cf. the two metaphors, here and in IV, ii, 200 — 202 supra.
V, V. Cymbeline. 197
Cym. O she was naught ; and 'long of her it was 270
That we meet here so strangely ; but her son
Is gone, we know not how nor where.
Pisa. My lord,
Now fear is from me, I'll speak truth. Lord Cloten,
Upon my lady's missing, came to me
With his sword drawn, foam'd at the mouth, and swore
If I discover'd not which way she was gone,
It was my instant death. By accident
I had a feigned letter of my master's
Then in my pocket, which directed him
To seek her on the mountains near to Milford, 280
"Where in a frenzy, in my master's garments
(Which he enforc'd from me) away he posts.
With unchaste purpose, and with oath to violate
My lady's honour : what became of him
I further know not.
Gui. Let me end the story :
I slew him there.
Cy7n. Marry, the gods forefend !
I would not thy good deeds should from my lips
Pluck a hard sentence : prythee, valiant youth,
Deny't again.
Gui. I have spoke it, and I did it.
Cym. He was a prince. 290
Gui. A most uncivil one. The wrongs he did me
283. "With unchaste purpose." See III, v, 130— 134 j'w/ra, note.
288,289. "Deny't again." Cf. M., II, iii, 94.95-
ipS Cynibeline. V, v.
Were nothing prince-like \ for he did provoke me
With language that would make me spurn the sea,
If it could so roar to me. I cut off' s head,
And am right glad he is not standing here
To tell this tale of mine.
Cytn. I am sorry for thee :
By thine own tongue thou art condemn'd, and must
Endure our law : thou'rt dead.
Imo. That headless man
I thought had been my lord.
Cym. Bind the offender,
And take him from our presence.
Bel. Stay, sir king. 300
This man is better than the man he slew.
As well descended as thyself, and hath
More of thee merited than a band of Clotens
Had ever scar for. Let his arms alone :
They were not born for bondage.
Cyjn. ^Vhy, old soldier,
296 sorry F, sorrcnv Fj.
292. " nothing prince-like" = irregulous. See IV, ii, 313 supra, note.
294 — 296. Cf. IV, ii, 115,116 J«/;-a.
304. "scar" has two leading senses; i, a rock (as being something
sheared or cut from the land). 2, a score cut, seam, scratch, or other mark
indicative of violent usage ; and herein especially the mark of a healed
wound. In the latter sense it is employed here ; but the particular is put
for the genera/, hy a very common figure (synecdoche) ; and " Had ever
scar for" = Ever showed evidence of "desert in ser\-ice," earning a like
recognition. Scar on the body is the particular, of which such evidence
(or external indication) is the geiural. If the rhetoric of some editors is
faulty, their logic is so too ; for it has been contested whether Cloten had
V, V, Cymbeline. 199
Wilt thou undo the worth thou art unpaid for
By tasting of our wrath ? How of descent
As good as we ?
Arv. In that he spake too far.
Cym. And thou shalt die for't.
Bel. We will die all three,
But I will prove that two on's are as good 310
As I have given out him. My sons, I must,
For mine own part, unfold a dangerous speech,
Though haply well for you.
310 011^ s Fo one's F,.
any scar, even whether he had ever seen service. But the argument is
simply, that how great soever is the desert of Cloten, or of any number of
such fellows, it is less than that of Guiderius. Cf T. 6^ C, I, i, 113,114.
Let Paris bleed : 'tis but a scar to scorn :
' Paris is gored by Menelaus' horn.'
The latter line is the supposed expression of the scorn : yet it is never so
pointed. Here scar is (i) the cicatrix of the wound, and also (2) the evidence
of Paris' wounded honour. In A. W., IV, ii, 38, "scarre" cannot have
this meaning : but Cf A. IV., IV, v, for two examples of scar in the primary
sense.
307. " tasting" = incurring (or sharing) some measure of The word is
used in the same sense further on : Cf 1. 403 infra, " For they [the Romans]
shall taste our comfort. " The Clarkes think that in the former place the
sense suggested by Staunton may lurk — viz., "testing" — but that is a
strained interpretation.
309. " We will die all three." Dr. Elze would assign these words to
Arviragus, because it is only Belarius and Guiderius that are condemned to
death. This is to miss the sense of "But " in the next line (as Tyrwhitt
did in III, vii, 40, where, however, it means only) : the meaning being,
" We will die, all three, if I do not fulfil my promise, and prove that
Guiderius and his brother are as well descended as the King." Cf K. L.,
Ill, vii, 65,66, and W. T., V, iii, 62.
200 Cynibeline. V, v.
Arv. Your danger's ours.
Gtii. And our good his.
Bel. Have at it then ! By leave, \To
Thou hadst, great king, a subject, who \Belarms.
Was call'd Belarius.
Cym. What of him ? he is
A banish'd traitor.
Bel. He it is that hath
Assum'd this age : indeed a banish'd man,
I know not how a traitor.
Cy7n. Take him hence !
The whole w^orld shall not save him.
Bel. Not too hot : 320
First pay me for the nursing of thy sons,
And let it be confiscate all, so soon
As I have receiv'd it.
Cym. Nursing of my sons ?
Bel. I am too blunt and saucy : here's my knee ;
Ere I arise I will prefer my sons :
Then spare not the old father. Mighty sir,
These two young gentlemen that call me father,
And think they are my sons, are none of mine :
They are the issue of your loins, my liege,
314,315 his Y -y is your good Elze. Have at it then, by leave F^ Have
at it then. By leave ! Elze (in two lines).
318. "Assumed this age" = Assumed this appearance of age, from
what I presented when you last saw me. (Henley).
320. "Not too hot." Cf. IV. T.,l,\\, 108.
V, V. Cymbeline. 201
And blood of your begetting.
Cym. How ? my issue ? 330
Bel. So sure as you your father's. I, old Morgan,
Am that Belarius whom you sometime banished :
Your pleasure was my mere offence, my punishment
Itself, and all my treason : that I suffer'd
Was all the harm I did. These gentle princes —
For such and so they are — these twenty years
Have I train'd up : those arts they have as I
Could put into them. My breeding was, sir,
As your highness knows : their nurse, Euriphile,
Whom for the theft I wedded, stole these children 340
Upon my banishment : I mov'd her to't,
Having receiv'd the punishment before
For that which I did then. Beaten for loyalty
Excited me to treason. Their dear loss,
The more of you 'twas felt, the more it shap'd
Unto my end of stealing them. But, gracious sir,
Here are your sons again, and I must lose
Two of the sweet'st companions in the world.
The benediction of these covering heavens
Fall on their heads like dew ! for they are worthy ,co
To inlay heaven with stars.
333 mere Rann (Tyiwhitt conj.) necre Fj.
350 like F2 liks Fi-
349,350. Cf. 1. 267,268 j«/ra.
CC
202 Cymbeline. V, v.
Cym. Thou weep'st, and speak'st : •
The service that you three have done is more
Unhke than this thou tell'st. I lost my children :
If these be they, I know not how to wish
A pair of worthier sons.
Bel. Be pleas'd awhile :
This gentleman, whom I call Polydore,
Most worthy prince, as yours, is true Guiderius ;
This gentleman, my Cadwal, Arviragus,
Your younger princely son : he, sir, was lapt
In a most curious mantle, wrought by th'hand 360
Of his queen mother, which for more probation
I can with ease produce.
Cytn. Guiderius had
Upon his neck a mole, a sanguine star ;
It was a mark of wonder.
Bel. This is he,
Who hath upon him still that natural stamp :
It was wise nature's end in the donation,
351 — 353. " Thy tears give testimony to the sincerity of thy relation ;
and I have the less reason to be incredulous, because the actions which you
have done within my knowledge are more incredible than the story which
you relate."— yb^MJiJW.
357. That is, " as mine, is (nominally) Polydore ; as yours, is truly
Guiderius."
364. "This mark of wonder" resembles that on Imogen, "A mole
cinque-spotted, like the crimson drops I'the bottom of a cowslip," II, ii,
38,39 supra. We have here an unobtrusive note of Shakespeare's subtlety.
The two marks are, as the Clarkes so well express it, " twinned in beauty
with a poet's imagination and a naturalist's truth. "
V, V. Cymbeline. 203
To be his evidence now.
Cyin. O, what am I ?
A mother to the birth of three ? Ne'er motlier
Rejoic'd deUverance more. Blest pray you be,
That after this strange starting from your orbs 370
You may reign in them now. O Imogen,
Thou hast lost by this a kingdom.
Imo. No, my lord,
I have got two worlds by't. O my gentle brothers.
Have we thus met ? O, never say hereafter
But I am truest speaker. You call'd me brother
When I was but your sister : I you brothers
When ye were so indeed.
Cym. Did you e'er meet }
Arv. Ay, my good lord.
Giii. And at first meeting lov'd.
Continued so, until we thought he died.
Cor. By the Queen's dram she swallow'd.
Cym. O rare instinct ! 380
When shall I hear all through ? This fierce abridgment
Hath to it circumstantial branches, which
Distinction should be rich in. Where ? how liv'd you ?
And when came you to serve our Roman captive }
367 O zuhat am I? Hanmer Oh, -vhat am I F,.
369 pray F^ may Rowe.
377 ye Rowe 2 ive F,.
370. "starting from your orbs. " Cf. H., I, v, 17.
204 Cymbeline. V, v.
How parted with your brothers ? how first met them ?
^Vhy fled you from the court ? and whither ? These
And your three motives to the battle, with
I know not how much more, should be demanded.
And all the other by-dependencies
From chance to chance ; but nor the time nor place 390
Will serve our long interrogatories. See,
Posthumus anchors upon Imogen ;
385 brothers Rowe 2 brother F^.
386 li'hither? 77/i:i'i? Theobald whether these? Y ^.
386. Here (as in 1. 134 where F^ has "One"= On) the alteration is
simply one of spelling: "whether" and "hether" being ordinary literal
forms of " whither" and " hither" at the period when Shakespeare wrote.
389. " by -dependencies." See I, vii, 106 j///;'a, note.
392. " Posthumus anchors on Imogen." A similar figure is employed
in M.forM, II, iv, 3 ; and Cf. W. T., I, ii, 263,264. The metaphor here
recals what Dyce describes as the "affecting passage" at 11. 262,263, with
its implied allusion to the storm which threatened fatal shipwreck to
Posthumus. We are glad to lose sight of him at such safe anchorage ; and
are reminded of Alaric Watts's beautiful verse —
His bark's at anchor, its sails are furl'd,
It has 'scaped the storm's deep chiding,
And safe from the buffeting waves of the world
In a haven of peace is riding :
and of the opposite fate delineated so well in another of his poems-
Even a thought
^ Of her, not seldom, hath the power to lift
My soul above the toils the world hath wrought
Round its aspiring wings. — But Pin adrift.
.Steevens thought the interest of the drama ceases at the point when
Posthumus and Imogen are reunited ; citing the authority of Horace, as well
as of Aristarchus and Aristophanes the Grammarian, who held that the
Odyssey should have ended as soon as Ulysses was restored to Penelope.
But surely Shakespeare judged right in bringing about the reconciliation of
Cymbeline and Belarius, and the proclamation of peace with the Romans.
V, V. Cymbeline. 205
And she, like harmless lightning, throws her eye
On him, her brothers, me, her master, hitting
Each object with a joy : the counter-change
Is severally in all. Let's quit this ground.
And smoke the temple with our sacrifices.
Thou art my brother, so we'll hold thee ever. \To Belarius.
Iiiw. You are my father too, and did relieve me,
To see this gracious season.
Cyin. All are o'erjoy'd 400
Save these in bonds : let them be joyful too.
For they shall taste our comfort.
Ivio. My good master,
I will yet do you service. [ Unlocking his gyves.
Luc. Happy be you !
Cyjn. The forlorn soldier that so nobly fought,
He would have well becom'd this place, and grac'd
The thaiikings of a king.
Post. I am, sir,
The soldier that did company these three
In poor beseeming : 'twas a fitment for
The purpose I then follow'd. That I was he.
Speak, lachimo : I had you down, and might 410
Have made you finish.
lac/i. I am down again ;
But now my heavy conscience sinks my knee.
As then your force did. Take that life, 'beseech you.
Which I so often owe ; but your ring first,
400 All are Ed. conj. All F^.
404 so F2 no Fj.
411 yott Fj j/oier F^.
2o6 Cynibeline. V, v.
And here the bracelet of the truest princess
That ever swore her faith. \Givhig Posthumus the jewels.
Post. Kneel not to me ;
The power that I have on you is to spare you :
The malice towards you to forgive you : live,
And deal with others better !
Cym. Nobly doom'd !
We'll learn our freeness of a son-in-law : 420
Pardon's the word to all.
Arv. You holp us, sir,
As you did mean indeed to be our brother ;
Joy'd are we that you are.
Post. Your servant, princes. Good my lord of Rome,
Call forth your soothsayer. As I slept, methought
Great Jupiter, upon his eagle back'd,
Appear'd to me, with other sprightly shows
Of mine own kindred. When I wak'd I found .
This label on my bosom, whose containing
Is so from sense in hardness that I can 430
Make no collection of it. Let him shew
His skill in the construction.
Lzic. Philarmonus !
Sooth. Here, my good lord.
Luc. Read, and declare the meaning.
422. "indeed" = actually; as in 1. 377 of this scene.
431. " collection " = inference. Cf. H., IV, v, 9, and Dr. Henry
More's /Vfc/zc^^^^/a (To the Reader) : " But this threefold Hypostasis ....
cannot be known by experience, but is rather concluded by collection of
reason." (Grosart, p. 12).
V, V. Cyinbeline. 207
Sooth, [Reads.] WJienas a lion's whelp shall, to himself
unktiown, without seeking find, and be embraced by a piece of
tender air; and when from a stately cedar shall be lopt branches,
which beifig dead many years shall after revive, be jointed to the
old stock, and freshly grow ; then shall Posthunms efid his
miseries, Britain be fortunate and flourish in peace and plenty.
Thou, Leonatus, art the hen's whelp, 440
The fit and apt construction of thy name,
Being Leo-natus, doth import so much :
The piece of tender air, thy virtuous daughter, [To CymbeHne.
Which we call mollis aer, and mollis aer
We term it mulier; which mulier I divine
Is this most constant wife [To Posthumus], who even now.
Answering the letter of the oracle.
Unknown to you, unsought, were dipt about
With this most tender air.
Cym. This hath some seeming.
Sooth. The lofty cedar, royal Cymbeline, 450
Personates thee ; and thy lopt branches point
Thy two sons forth, who, by Belarius stolen,
For many years thought dead, are now reviv'd,
To the majestic cedar join'd, whose issue
Promises Britain peace and plenty.
Cym. Well,
By peace we will begin. And, Caius Lucius,
446 this Fi thy Capell.
456 By Hanmer My F^.
446 "who" = you who.
2o8 Cymbeline. V, v.
Although the victor, we submit to Caesar
And to the Roman empire, promising
To pay our wonted tribute, from the which
We were dissuaded by our wicked Queen, 460
Whom heavens, in justice, both on her and hers
Have laid most heavy hand.
Sooth. The fingers of the powers above do tune
The harmony of this peace. The vision
Which I made known to Lucius, ere the stroke
Of this yet scarce-cold battle, at this instant
Is full accomplish'd : for the Roman eagle,
From south to west on wing soaring aloft,
Lessen'd herself, and in the beams o'th'sun
So vanish'd ; which foreshew'd our princely eagle, 470
Th'imperial Caesar, should again unite
His favour with the radiant Cymbeline,
Which shines here in the west.
Cyvu Laud we the gods,
And let our crooked smokes climb to their nostrils
From our blest altars ! Publish we this peace
To all our subjects. Set we forward : let
A Roman and a British ensign wave
Friendly together : so through Lud's town march.
And in the temple of great Jupiter
Our peace we'll ratify : seal it with feasts. 480
Set on there ! never was a war did cease,
(Ere bloody hands were wash'd), with such a peace. \Exeunt.
466 this yet Fj yet this F^.
^upplcmcntarp 3lnnotation?,
Page. Act.
lO I
Line of
Scene. Text.
15 ..
49
55
57
66
66,67
77,78
3
33
5,6
12,1;
Addendum.
Cf. also T. of A., I, ii, 128,129.
T. &= C, IV, iv, 59, and A. ^ C,
II, vi, 85,86.
Surrey's Poet/is — "he fratighteth full
our breasts."
2 K. H. 6, IV, ii, 25, "senseless" is
the M. E. word for our insensible.
Ill, vi, 15 — 17 infra.
Paradise Lost, Bk. viii, 562 — 570.
Mr. G. Gould has also proposed this emenda-
tion. Cf Davenant's Unfoi-tunate Lovers,
[II, i,
Make haste and shift the air,
There's nothing so nmvltolesome, &c.
and Webster's White Devil, I,
You shift your shirt there, when you retire from tennis.
after
disjunctive As in V, iii, 50 infra.
after 173 and III, ii, 64 infra.
"and I to peruse him." Here "had "is to
be understood before " to."
The allusion to the sun, in compliment to
a woman's charms, is also in Greene's
Menaphon, 1589 (Arber, p. 72). "Pardon
me, faire Shepherdesse (quoth Pleusidippus),
if it be a fault, for I cannot choose, being
eagle-sighted, but gaze on the Sunne the
first time I see it."
Cf. also Webster's White Devil, I,
My lords, you shall not -word it any further.
DD
2IO Supplementary Annotations.
Line of
Page. Act. Scene. Te.xt. Addendum.
22 I V 15,16 note "p. 23) ^^t^r all, the Clarkes maybe right here, and
the verb " are " (" are wonderfully to extend
him ") may be governed by the collocated
substantives, "This matter" and "his
banishment."
after
25 ,, ,, 35 occasion, as in IV. Z, V, ii, 20.
o^ifote Cf. IV, iv, 19 ?w/ra.
after
,, ,, ,, 48 country as also oi family, mountain, and a few others.
after
27 ,, ,, 61 Britaine Mr. Gould has the same remark in his Corri-
genda and Explanations of Shakespeare,
1884, p. 47.
28 „ „ 83 Cf. a, IV, i, 28.
29 ,, ,, 98 and 1. 131 infra.
41 ,, vii 17 Cf. A. &■ C, III, ii, 12.
40 — 42 at end
43 » >, &46— 49 of note and IV, ii, 133,134 zw/rd-.
,, ,, ,, 44,45 ,, the late Mr. Hudson has the same interpre-
tation.
after
44 ,, »i 50 T. of A., I, i, 191 and
48 ,, ,, 104 — 106 Cf. H., I, iii, 64,65.
52 ,, ,, 163,164 Cf. K. H. 8, II, iv, 48,49, " one. The wisest
prince. "
70 II iii 131,133 PiXso Sir John Oldcastle, " 'Sblood, you rogue
deliver, or I'll not leave you so much as a
hair above your shoulders." This, of course,
means, he will cut off his head.
73 ,, iv 20 Cf. Arden of Feversham, 1770, p. 54, "If
thou beest tainted for z penny matter."
79 ,, ,, 116 In illustration of S. Walker's conjecture,
"one, her woman," see I, vii, 163,164
just above.
81 ,, ,, 165 Cf. W. T., IV, iv, 75,76 for a still more
forcible comparison of purity to snow.
84 III i 20 Cf. 3 Hr. H. 6, IV, ii, 43,44.
86 „ „ 48 Cf. A. &' C, I, ii, 199, and IV. T., IV, iv,
489.
87 „ „ 83 Cf. also IV. T., Ill, iii, i.
Supplementary Atinotations. 211
Line of
Page. Act. Scene. Te.xt.
Addendum.
loi III iv 34 Cf. 2 K. H. a, (Induction) 4.
after
103 >> i> 48 he died That "mother" is used as a warranty of
female tenderness and gentleness in A. Y. L. ,
III, V, is proved by the following from
Sioeinam, the Woman-hater, Arraigned by
Women, 1620, V, ii (Grosart's Occasional
Issues, vol. XIII, 75),
Inhuman monster, hast thou nev'r a Mother.
104 ,, ,, 61 This line recals y«z;^wa/ 6'a/., xi, 175,176,
Haec eadem illi
Omnia quum faciant, hilares nitidique vocantur.
62 Cf. IV. T., II, iii, 170.
109 ,, ,, 136—138 Qi.'?o^€% Windsor Forest, \. apo.
And seas but join the regions they divide.
So De Quincey, in The Sphinx's Riddle (p. 1 1
of Essay),
Rivers and seas, for instance, are useful,
not merely as means of separating nations from
each other, but also as means of uniting them.
no ,, ,, 154 " niceness " = scrupulousness. Ci. M.for M.,
II, iv, 162 (nicety).
" we'll even All " = we'll do even All.
Cf. P. IV, i, 7,8,
but be
A soldier to thy purpose.
Cf. also IV, ii, 205 infra, and W. T., II, i, 82.
Cf. W. T.,Y, iii, 14—17.
Cf. 2 A'. II. 4, IV, i, 151.
But possibly Imogen is reflecting on her own
harmless character as a "foe." Critici
jtidicent.
Cf. 244,245 infra.
The Editors add to the stage direction, "with
Cloten's head " — an addition hardly borne
out by the text.
140 ,, ,, 178 "Civility" = refinement. Cf. V, v, 292
infra (uncivil), and T. G. V., V, iv, 156
(civil).
142 ,, ,, 205 "easilest." Cf. "busie lest,"in 7'.,III, i, 15.
Ill
"
"
180
182
114
v
33
116
,,
,,
71,72
120
,,
VI
6
121
"
"
27
129
IV
ii
4,5
137
,,
n
,,
212 Supplementary Annotations.
Page.
Line of
Act. Scene. Text.
143
IV ii 215
,, ,, 223 — 228
144
,,
,,
243
148
11
>>
)>
244
323
149
,,
,,
347
152
"
in
3—7
154
jj
J,
29
156
"
IV
19
158
V
i
I
160
J ^
20
That is, "He'll make his grave as pure and
fresh as if he were asleep on a bed."
Steevens quotes from The Owl (Drayton),
Covering with moss the dead's unclosed eye
The little red-breast teacheth charitie.
Both passages are drawn from an old legend
of the ruddock's (or red-breast's) charitable
office, in covering an unburied corpse with
leaves and moss. One version is in The
Babes of the Wood. Dr. Elze has also
conjectured wind around for "winter-
ground. "
"'came" = became. Cf. Sonnet 134, 1. 11.
"paid" = punished; as we say, paid out.
Cf. Ardcn of Feversham, 1770, p. 29, "If
he be not paid his own."
Also A. &= C, II, i, 45.
Also^. V. L., Ill, V, 50.
Cf. If., IV, V, 77—81 and JV. T, II, ii, 95
et seq.
" Affront " = bring to the encounter.
Cf. The Sad Shepherd, II, i,
that make me cheese
To cloy the markets.
after cf A' Z., II, iii, 5 — 7, " I am bethought."
" Mistress : peace ! " It is but fair to give the
passage quoted by Staunton in support of
his very remarkable emendation— which
some may think deserving of promotion
to the text — as a proof that the word
" Mistresspiece " was not an ingenious
coinage of the distinguished critic. It is
from Lord Yi&xhexi's History of Henry VIII,
1649.
Among whom [the many faire Ladies],
because Mistresse Elizabeth Blunt, daughter to
Sir John Blunt, Knight, was thought, for her
rare Ornaments of Nature and education, to be
the beauty and Mistress-peece of her time, that
entire affection passed betwixt them, as at last
she bore him a Sonne.
Supplementary Annotations. 21
Page.
Act. Scene.
Line of
Text.
160
V i
26,27
161
,, ii
^,-6
Addendum.
"Whose life Is every breath a death." Cf.
31. for 31., Ill, i, 39,40.
Cf. Philaster, IV, I, which imitates this :
I hear the tread of people : I am hurt ;
The gods take part against me ; could this boor
Have held me thus else.
after
167 ,, iii 74,76 helm." Also IV, iv, last line, j^/ra, " Fortune brings
in some boats that are not steer'd."
,, ,, ,, ,, So in V, iv, 26 infra, "being yours," and
V, V, 50 infra, "which being took."
168 ,, ,, 91 Mr. Daniel's conjecture, adopted by the late
Mr. Hudson in his Harvard Ed., is
felicitous enough : for Posthumus was a
"lag." But "leg" is as defensible here
as " legs " in K. R. 2, II, iii, 90, where
" legs " stands for exiles ; and so " a leg '
may well mean a fugitive. As the "leg'
above was not to return, so the "legs'
in K. a. 2 are "banish'd and forbidden'
to return. Just so we speak of " the
hands," where "hands" means men who
use their hands in manufacture.
207 ,, V 444,445 Dr. Aldis Wright opportunely sends the follow-
ing extract from a book of the time, giving
the same fanciful and absurd etymology
of mulier.
If any shall reply and say, that it is not to
be wondered that the ancient Latinists neuer
me'tioned these Etymologies, considering the
names were not then in vse ; I answer, that they
had no good dexteritie in giuing Etymologies of
Ancient latin words ; witness the notation of
Mulier, quasi mollis aer.
A World of Wonders. By Henry Stephen,
translated by R. C, 1607, p. 292.
Printed by Robert Birbeck, Birmingham.
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