Lies he not bed-rid? and again does nothing,
But what he did being childish?

FLO.

He has his health, and ampler ftrength, indeed,

Than most have of his age.

POL.

No, good fir;

By my white beard,

You offer him, if this be fo, a wrong.

Something unfilial: Reafon, my fon

Should choose himself a wife; but as good reason,
The father, (all whofe joy is nothing else

But fair pofterity,) fhould hold fome counsel
In fuch a business.

FLO.

I yield all this;

But, for fome other reafons, my grave fir,
Which 'tis not fit you know, I not acquaint
My father of this business.

SHEP. Let him, my fon; he shall not need to

[Discovering himself.

Whom fon I dare not call; thou art too base
To be acknowledg'd: Thou a fcepter's heir,
That thus affect'ft a fheep-hook!-Thou old traitor,
I am forry, that, by hanging thee, I can but

It probably means" Can he affert and vindicate his right to his own property?" M. MASON.

Shorten thy life one week.-And thou, fresh piece Of excellent witchcraft; who, of force,' must know The royal fool thou cop'ft with ;

SHEP.

O, my

heart!

POL. I'll have thy beauty scratch'd with briars,

and made

More homely than thy ftate.-For thee, fond boy,-
If I may ever know, thou doft but figh,

That thou no more fhalt fee this knack, (as never
I mean thou fhalt,) we'll bar thee from fucceffion;
Not hold thee of our blood, no not our kin,
Far than Deucalion off: Mark thou my words;
Follow us to the court.-Thou churl, for this time,
Though full of our displeasure, yet we free thee
From the dead blow of it.-And you, enchant-

ment,

Worthy enough a herdsman; yea, him too,
That makes himself, but for our honour therein,
Unworthy thee,—if ever, henceforth, thou
Thefe rural latches to his entrance open,
Or hoop his body more with thy embraces,

3who, of force,] Old Copy-whom. Corrected by the editor of the fecond folio. MALONE.

6 That thou no more fhalt fee this knack, (as never-] The old copy reads, with abfurd redundancy:

"That thou no more fhalt never fee," &c. STEEVENS, "Far than -] I think for far than we fhould read far as. We will not hold thee of our kin even fo far off as Deucalion the common ancestor of all. JOHNSON.

The old reading farre, i. e. further, is the true one. The ancient comparative of fer was ferrer. See the Gloffaries to Robert of Glocester and Robert of Brunne. This, in the time of Chaucer, was foftened into ferre,

"But er I bere thee moche ferre."
"Thus was it peinted, I can fay no ferre."
Knight's Tale, 2062.

H. of Fa. B. II. v. 92.

TYRWHITT.

Corrected by

8 Or hoop his body-] The old copy has-hope.

Mr. Pope. MALONE.

153

[Exit.

I will devise a death as cruel for thee,
As thou art tender to't.

PER.

Even here undone!

I was not much afeard: for once, or twice,
I was about to speak; and tell him plainly,
The selfsame fun, that fhines upon his court,
Hides not his vifage from our cottage, but
Looks on alike.-Wilt please you, fir, be gone?
[TO FLORIZEL.

9 I was not much afeard: &c.] The character is here finely fuftained. To have made her quite aftonished at the king's discovery of himself had not become her birth; and to have given her prefence of mind to have made this reply to the king, had not become her education. WARBURTON.

2 I was about to speak; and tell him plainly,
The felfsame fun, that fbines upon his court,
Hides not his vifage from our cottage, but

Looks on alike.] So, in Nofce Teipfum, a poem by Sir John Davies, 1599:

ray,

"Thou, like the funne, doft with indifferent "Into the palace and the Again, in The Legend of Orpheus and Eurydice, 1597: shine." cottage "The funne on rich and poor alike doth fhine." Looks on alike is fenfe, and is fupported by a paffage in King Henry VIII:

66

No, my lord,

"You know no more than others, but you blame

Things that are known alike."

i. e. that are known alike by all.

To look upon, without any fubftantive annexed, is a mode of expreffion, which, though now unufual, appears to have been legiti mate in Shakspeare's time. So, in Troilus and Creffida :

"He is my prize; I will not look upon.”

Again, in K. Henry VI. P. III:

66

Why stand we here—

"And look upon, as if the tragedy

"Were play'd in jeft by counterfeited actors." MALONE. To look upon, in more modern phrafe, is to look on, i. e. to be a mere idle fpectator. In this fenfe it is employed in the two preceding inftances. STEEVENS.

the felfsame fun, &c.] "For he maketh his fun to rise on the evil and the good." St. Matthew, v. 45. DouCE.

I told you, what would come of this: 'Beseech you, Of your own ftate take care: this dream of mine,Being now awake, I'll queen it no inch further, But milk my ewes, and weep.

CAM.

Speak, ere thou dieft.

Why, how now, father?

SHEP.
Nor dare to know that which I know.-O, fir,

I cannot fpeak, nor think,

[TO FLORIZEL.

You have undone a man of fourscore three,'*
That thought to fill his grave in quiet; yea,
To die upon the bed my father died,
To lie close by his honest bones: but now
Some hangman must put on my shroud, and lay me
Where no priest shovels-in duft.3—Ocurfed wretch!
[TO PERDITA.

That knew'ft this was the prince, and would'st ad

venture

To mingle faith with him.-Undone! undone!
If I might die within this hour, I have liv'd
To die when I defire.*

FLO.

[Exit. Why look you fo upon me? s

2 You have undone a man of fourfcore three, &c.] Thefe fentiments, which the poet has heighten'd by a ftrain of ridicule that runs through them, admirably characterize the fpeaker; whose selfishness is feen in concealing the adventure of Perdita; and here supported, by fhowing no regard for his fon or her, but being taken up entirely with himself, though fourscore three. WARBURTON.

3 Where no priest shovels-in duft.] This part of the priest's office might be remembered in Shakspeare's time: it was not left off till the reign of Edward VI. FARMER.

That is in pronouncing the words earth to earth, &c.

4 If I might die within this hour, I have liv'd To die when I defire.] So, in Macbeth:

"Had I but died an hour before this chance,

"I had liv'd a blessed time." STEEVENS.

HENLEY.

5 Why look you fo upon me?] Perhaps the two laft words fhould be omitted.

STEEVENS.

I am but forry, not afeard; delay'd,

But nothing alter'd: What I was, I am:

More ftraining on, for plucking back; not following My leash unwillingly.

Сам.

Gracious my lord,

You know your father's temper: at this time
He will allow no fpeech,-which, I do guess,
You do not purpose to him;—and as hardly
Will he endure your fight as yet, I fear:
Then, 'till the fury of his highness settle,
Come not before him.

FLO.

I think, Camillo.

CAM.

I not purpose it.

Even he, my lord.

PER. How often have I told you, 'twould be thus? How often faid, my dignity would last

But till 'twere known?

FLO.

It cannot fail, but by

The violation of my faith; And then

Let nature crush the fides o'the earth together, And mar the feeds within!"-Lift up thy looks: 8From my fucceffion wipe me, father! I

Am heir to my affection.

CAM.

Be advis'd.

FLO. I am; and by my fancy: if my reafon Will thereto be obedient, I have reason;

6 You know your father's temper:] The old copy reads-my father's. Corrected by the editor of the fecond folio. MALONE. • And mar the feeds within!] So, in Macbeth:

8

nance.

9

"And nature's germins tumble all together." STEEVENS.
Lift up thy looks :]
thy looks: "Lift up the light of thy counte-
Pfalm, iv. 6. STEEVENS.

and by my fancy:] It must be remembered that fancy in our author very often, as in this place, means love. JOHNSON.

So, in A Midsummer Night's Dream:

"Fair Helena in fancy following me."

See Vol. V. p. 132, n. 6. STEEVENS.