of the mouth ;-Therefore, precisely, can you carry your good-will to the maid ?

Shal. Coufin Abraham Slender, can you love her? Slen. I hope, fir,-I will do, as it fhall become one that would do reafon.

Eva. Nay, Got's lords and his ladies, you must fpeak poffitable, if you can carry her your defires towards her.

Shal. That you muft: Will you, upon good dowry, marry her?

Slen. I will do a greater thing than that, upon your request, coufin, in any reafon.

Shal. Nay, conceive me, conceive me, fweet coz; what I do, is to pleasure you, coz: Can you love the maid?

Slen. I will marry her, fir, at your request; but if there be no great love in the beginning, yet heaven may decrease it upon better acquaintance, when we are marry'd, and have more occafion to know one another: I hope, upon familiarity will grow more

2

contempt:

the lips is parcel of the mouth;] Thus the old copies. The modern editors read - " parcel of the mind.”

To be parcel of any thing is an expreffion that often occurs in the old plays.

So in Decker's Satiromaftix:

"And make damnation parcel of your oath."

Again, in Tamburlaine, 1590:

"To make it parcel of my empery."

Again, in Rowley's When you fee me you know me, 1613: "For as I tak't 'tis parcel of your oath."

This paffage, however, might have been defigned as a ridicule on another, in John Lylly's Midas, 1592:

"Pet. What lips hath she?

"Li. Tufh! Lips are no part of the head, only made for a double-leaf door for the mouth." STEEVENS.

2

I hope, upon familiarity will grow more content :-] Certainly, the editors in their fagacity have murdered a jeft here. It is defigned, no doubt, that Slender fhould fay decrease, instead of increafe; and diffolved, diffolutely, instead of refolved and refolutely: but to make him fay, on the prefent occafion, that upon familiarity will grow more content, instead of contempt, is difarming the

fentiment

contempt: but if you fay, marry her, I will marry her, that I am freely diffolved, and diffolutely.

Eva. It is a fery difcretion anfwer; fave, the faul' is in the 'ort diffolutely the 'ort is, according to our meaning, refolutely ;-his meaning is good. Shal. Ay, I think my coufin meant well.

Slen. Ay, or else I would I might be hang'd, la,

Re-enter Anne Page.

Shal. Here comes fair mistress Anne:-Would I were young, for your fake, mistress Anne!

Anne. The dinner is on the table; my father defires your worship's company.

Shal. I will wait on him, fair mistress Anne.

Eva. Od's pleffed will! I will not be abfence at the grace. [Ex. Shal. and Evans. Anne. Will't please your worship to come in, fir? Slen. No, I thank you, forfooth, heartily; I am very well.

Anne. The dinner attends you, fir.

Slen. I am not a-hungry, I thank you, forfooth; -Go, firrah, for all you are my man, go, wait upon my coufin Shallow: [Exit Simple.] A juftice of peace fometime may be behoiden to his friend for a man : -I keep but three men and a boy yet, till my mother be dead; But what though? yet I live like a poor gentleman born.

Anne. I may not go in without your worship: they will not fit, till you come.

Slen. I'faith, I'll eat nothing: I thank you as much as though I did.

Anne. I pray you, fir, walk in,

fentiment of all its falt and humour, and difappointing the audience of a reasonable caufe for laughter. THEOBALD.

Theobald's conjecture may be supported by the fame intentional blunder in Love's Labour Loft.

"Sir, the contempts thereof are as touching me."

STEEVENS.

Slen

Slen. I had rather walk here, I thank you: I bruis'd my fhin the other day with playing at fword and dagger with a master of fence, three veneys for a difh of ftew'd prunes; and, by my troth, I cannot abide the smell of hot meat fince. Why do your dogs bark fo? be there bears i' the town?

Anne. I think, there are, fir; I heard them talk'd of.

Slen. I love the fport well; but I fhall as foon quarrel at it, as any man in England:-You are afraid, if you fee the bear loose, are you not?

Anne. Ay, indeed, fir.

Slen. That's meat and drink to me now: I have feen Sackerfon loofe, twenty times; and have taken him by the chain: but, I warrant you, the women have fo cry'd and fhriek'd at it, that it pafs'd-but women, indeed, cannot abide 'em; they are very ill-favour'd rough things.

Re-enter Page.

ގ

Page. Come, gentle mafter Slender, come; we stay for you.

—three veneys for a dish, &c.] i. e. three venues, French, Three different fet-to's, bouts, a technical term. So in B. and Fletcher's Philafter: thou wouldst be loth to play half a dozen venies at Wafters with a good fellow for a broken head." So in Chapman's comedy, The Widow's Tears, 1612: "So there's venie for venie, I have given it him." So in The Two Maids of More-clacke, 1609: "This was a pafs, 'twas fencer's play, and for the after veny, let me use my skill." So in The fa mous Hift. &c. of Capt. Tho. Stukely, 1605" for forfeits and venneys given upon a wager at the ninth button of your doublet." So in our author's Love's Labour Loft:

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-a quick venew of wit." STEEVENS. -Sackerfon- Seckerfon is likewife the name of a bear in the old comedy of Sir Giles Goofecap. STEEVENS.

5 that it pass'd: It paf'd, or this paffes, was a way of fpeaking customary heretofore, to fignify the excefs, or extraor dinary degree of any thing. The fentence completed would be, This pales all exprefion, or perhaps, This passes all things. We still ufe paffing well, paffing firange. WARBURTON.

Slen

Slen. I'll eat nothing, I thank you, fir.

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Page. By cock and pye, you fhall not choofej fir: come, come.

Slen. Nay, pray you, lead the way.

Page. Come on, fir.

Slen. Mistress Anne, yourself shall go firft.

Anne. Not I, fir; pray you, keep on.

Slen. Truly, I will not go firft; truly-la: I will not do you that wrong.

Anne. I pray you, fir.

Slen. I'll rather be unmannerly, than troublesome : you do yourself wrong, indeed-la.

[Exeunt.

Eva. Go your ways, and ask of Doctor Caius house, which is the way and there dwells one mistress Quickly, which is in the manner of his nurfe, or his dry nurse, or his cook, or his laundry, his washer, and his wringer.

Simp. Well, fir.

Eva. Nay, it is petter yet :-give her this letter; for it is a 'oman that altogether's acquaintance with mistress Anne Page; and the letter is, to defire and require her to folicit your mafter's defires to mistress Anne Page: I pray you, be gone; I will make an end of my dinner; there's pippins and cheese to [Exeunt feverally.

come.

6

By cock and pye,-] See a note on act V. fc. i. Hen. IV. P. II. STEEVENS.

7 that altogethers acquaintance] Should not this be" that altogether's acquaintance," i. e. that is altogether acquainted? The English, I apprehend, would still be bad enough for Evans.

TYRWHITT.

I have availed myself of this remark. STEEVENS.

SCENE

Enter Falstaff, Hoft, Bardolph, Nym, Piftol, and Robin. Fal. Mine hoft of the Garter,

Hoft. What fays my bully-rook? speak schollarly, and wifely.

Fal. Truly, mine hoft, I muft turn away fome of my followers.

Hoft. Difcard, bully Hercules; cafhier: let them wag; trot, trot.

Fal. I fit at ten pounds a week.

Hoft. Thou 'rt an emperor, Cæfar, Keifar?, and Pheezar. I will entertain Bardolph; he fhall draw, he fhall tap faid I well, bully Hector ?

Fal. Do fo, good mine hoft. Hoft. I have fpoke; let him follow: thee froth, and lime: I am at a word;

Let me fee follow. [Exit Hoft. Fal.

my bully rock?] The fpelling of this word is corrupted, and thereby its primitive meaning is loft. The old plays have generally bully-rook, which is right; and fo it is exhibited by the folio edition of Shakespeare, as well as the 4to, 1619. The latter part of this compound title is taken from the rooks at the game of chefs. STEEVENS.

9 ——Keifar,—] The preface to Stowe's Chronicle obferves, that the Germans ufe the K for C, pronouncing Keyfar for Cafar, their general word for an emperor. TOLLET.

Let me fee thee froth, and live:]] This paffage has paffed through all the editions without fufpicion of being corrupted; but the reading of the old quartos of 1602 and 1619, Let me fee froth and lime, I take to be the true one. The Hoft calls for an immediate fpecimen of Bardolph's abilities as a tapfter; and frothing beer and liming fack were tricks practifed in the time of Shakespeare. The first was done by putting foap into the bottom of the tankard when they drew the beer; the other, by mix ing lime with the fack (i. e. fherry) to make it fparkle in the glafs.

Froth