One all of luxury, an ass, a madman; Lucio. 'Faith, my lord, I spoke it but according to the trick: If you will hang me for it, you may, but I had rather it would please you, I might be whip'd. Duke. Whip'd first, sir, and hang'd after.Proclaim it, Provost, round about the city; If any woman 's wrong'd by this lewd fellow, (As I have heard him swear himself, there's one Whom he begot with child,) let her appear, And he shall marry her: the nuptial finish'd, Let him be whip'd and hang'd. Lucio. I beseech your highness, do not marry me to a whore! Your highness said even now, I made you a duke; good my lord, do not recompense me, in making me a cuckold. Duke. Upon mine honour thou shalt marry her. Thy slanders I forgive; and therewithal Remit thy other forfeits:2-Take him to prison: 9 One all of luxury,] Luxury means incontinence. So, in King Lear: "To 't, luxury, pellmell, for I lack soldiers." Steevens, according to the trick:] To my custom, my habitual practice. Johnson. 1 Lucio does not say my trick but the trick; nor does he mean to excuse himself by saying that he spoke according to his usual practice, for that would be an aggravation to his guilt, but according to the trick and practice of the times. It was probably then the practice, as it is at this day, for the dissipated and profligate, to ridicule and slander persons in high station, or of superior virtue. M. Mason. According to the trick, is, according to the fashion of thoughtless youth. So, in Love's Labour's Lost: " yet I have a trick of the old rage." Again, in a collection of epigrams, entitled Wit's Bedlam, printed about the year 1615: 2 "Carnus calls lechery a trick of youth; "So he grows old; but this trick hurts his growth." Malone. thy other forfeits:] Thy other punishments. Johnson. To forfeit anciently signified to commit a carnal offence. So, in The History of Helyas, Knight of the Swanne, b. 1. no date: to affirme by an untrue knight, that the noble queen Beatrice had forfated with a dogge." Again, in the 12th Pageant of the Coventry Collection of Mysteries, the Virgin Mary tells Joseph: And see our pleasure herein executed. Lucio. Marrying a punk, my lord, is pressing to death, whipping, and hanging. Duke. Sland'ring a prince deserves it.— I have confess'd her, and I know her virtue.— "I dede nevyr forfete with man I wys." MS. Cott. Vesp. D. viii. Steevens. 3 Thanks, good friend Escalus, for thy much goodness:] I have always thought that there is great confusion in this concluding speech. If my criticism would not be censured as too licentious, I should regulate it thus: Thanks, good friend Escalus, for thy much goodness, We shall employ thee in a worthier place. Ang. The offence pardons itself. Duke. There's more behind That is more gratulate. Dear Isabel, I have a motion, &c. Johnson. that is more gratulate.] i. e. to be more rejoiced in; meaning, I suppose, that there is another world, where he will find yet greater reason to rejoice in consequence of his upright ministry. Escalus is represented as an ancient nobleman, who, in conjunction with Angelo, had reached the highest office of the state. He therefore could not be sufficiently rewarded here; but is necessarily referred to a future and more exalted recompense. Steevens. I cannot approve of Steevens's explanation of this passage, which is very far-fetched indeed. The Duke gives Escalus thanks for his much goodness, but tells him that he had some other reward in store for him more acceptable than thanks; which agrees with what he said before, in the beginning of this act: we hear "Such goodness of your justice, that our soul Heywood also in his Apology for Actors, 1612, uses to gratulate, in the sense of to reward. "I could not chuse but gratulate your honest endeavours with this remembrance." Malone. Mr. M. Mason's explanation may be right; but he forgets that the speech he brings in support of it, was delivered before Thanks, Provost, for thy care, and secrecy; What's mine is yours, and what is yours is mine :So, bring us to our palace; where we 'll show What's yet behind, that 's meet you all should know. [Exeunt.5 the denouement of the scene, and was, at that moment, as much addressed to Angelo as to Escalus; and for Angelo the Duke had certainly no reward or honours, in store.-Besides, I cannot but regard the word-requital as an interpolation, because it destroys the measure, without improvement of the sense. "Forerunning more," therefore, would only signify-preceding further thanks. Steevens. 5 I cannot help taking notice with how much judgment Shakspeare has given turns to this story from what he found it in Cynthio Giraldi's novel. In the first place, the brother is there actually executed, and the governor sends his head in a bravado to the sister, after he had debauched her on promise of marriage: acircumstance of too much horror and villainy for the stage. And, in the next place, the sister afterwards is, to solder up her disgrace, married to the governor, and begs his life of the emperor, though he had unjustly been the death of her brother. which absurdities the poet has avoided by the episode of Mariana, a creature purely of his own invention. The Duke's remaining incognito at home to supervise the conduct of his deputy, is also entirely our author's fiction. Both This story was attempted for the scene before our author was fourteen years old, by one George Whetstone, in Two Comical Discourses, as they are called, containing the right excellent and famous history of Promos and Cassandra, printed with the black letter, 1578. The author going that year with Sir Humphrey Gilbert to Norimbega, left them with his friends to publish. Theobald. The novel of Cynthio Giraldi, from which Shakspeare is sup posed to have borrowed this fable may be read in Shakspeare illustrated, elegantly translated, with remarks which will assist the inquirer to discover how much absurdity Shakspeare has admitted or avoided. I cannot but suspect that some other had new-modelled the novel of Cynthio, or written a story which in some particulars resembled it, and that Cynthio was not the author whom Shakspeare immediately followed. The Emperor in Cynthio is named Maximine; the Duke, in Shakspeare's enumeration of the persons of the drama, is called Vincentio. This appears a very slight remark; but since the Duke has no name in the play, nor is ever mentioned but by his title, why should he be called Vincentio among the persons, but because the name was copied from the story, and placed superfluously at the head of the list by the mere habit of transcription? It is therefore likely that there was then a story of Vincentio Duke of Vienna, different from that of Maximine Emperor of the Romans. Of this play the light or comie part is very natural and pleas. ing, but the grave scenes, if a few passages be excepted, have more labour than elegance. The plot is rather intricate than artful. The time of the action is indefinite; some time, we know not how much, must have elapsed between the recess of the Duke and the imprisonment of Claudio; for he must have learned the story of Mariana in his disguise, or he delegated his pow. er to a man already known to be corrupted. The unities of action and place are sufficiently preserved.` Johnson. The duke probably had learnt the story of Mariana in some of his former retirements," having ever loved the life removed." (page 331) "And he had a suspicion that Angelo, was but a seemer, (page 334) and therefore he stays to watch him." Blackstone. The Fable of Whetstone's Promos and Cassandra, 1578. "The argument of the whole History." "In the cyttie of Julio (sometimes under the dominion of Corvinus kynge of Hungarie and Bobemia) there was a law, that what man so ever committed adultery should lose his head, and the woman offender should weare some disguised apparel, during her life, to make her infamously noted. This severe lawe, by the favour of some mercifull magistrate, became little regarded, untill the time of lord Promos' auctority; who convicting a young gentleman named Andrugio of incontinency, condemned both him and his minion to the execution of this statute. Andrugio had a very virtuous and beautiful gentlewoman to his sister, named Cassandra: Cassandra, to enlarge her brother's life submitted an humble petition to the lord Promos. Promos regarding her good behaviours, and fantasying her great beawtie, and doy. was much delighted with the sweete order of her talke; ing good, that evill might come thereof, for a time he repryved her brother: but wicked man, tourning his liking into unlawfull lust, he set downe the spoile of her honour, raunsome for her brother's life: chaste Cassandra, abhorring both him and his sute, by no persuasion would yeald to this raunsome. But in fine wonne, by the importunitye of hir brother (pleading for life) upon these conditions she agreed to Promos. First, that he should pardon her brother, and after marry ber. Promos, as feareles, in promisse, as carelesse in performance, with sollemne vowe sygned her conditions ; but worse then any infydel!, his will satissfyed, he performed neither the one nor the other: for to keepe, his auctoritye unspotted with favour, and to prevent Gas sandra's clamors, he commaunded the gayler secretly to present Cassandra with her brother's head. The gayler, [touched] with the outcryes of Andrugio, (abhorryng Promos' lewdenes) by the providence of God provided thus for his safety. He presented Cassandra with a felon's head newlie executed; who knew it not, being mangled from her brother's (who was set at libertie by the gayler). [She] was so agreeved at this trecherye, that, at the point to kyl her self, she spared that stroke, to be avenged of Promos: and devysing a way, she concluded to make her fortunes knowne unto the kinge. She, executing this resolution, was so highly favoured of the king, that forthwith he hasted to do justice on Promos: whose judgment was to marry Cassandra, to repaire her crased honour; which donne, for his hainous offence, he should lose his head. This maryage solempnised, Cassandra tyed in the greatest bondes of affection to her husband, became an earnest suter for his life: the kinge, tendringe the generall benefit of the cōmon weale before her special case, although he favoured her much, would not graunt her sute. Andrugio [disguised amonge the company] sorrowing the griefe of his sister, bewrayde his safety, and craved pardon. The kinge to renowne the vertues of Cassandra, pardoned both him and Promos. The circumstances of this rare historye, in action livelye foloweth." Whetstone, however, has not afforded a very correct analysis of his play, which contains a mixture of comic scenes, between a Bawd, a Pimp, Felons, &c. together with some serious situations which are not described. Steevens. One paragraph of the foregoing narrative being strangely confused in the old copy, by some carelessness of the printer, I have endeavoured to rectify it, by transposing a few words, and adding two others, which are included within crotchets. Malone END OF VOL. III. H. Maxwell, Printer, No. 25, N. Second-Street. |