SCENE II. Another Part of the Forest. Enter, from one fide, MOWBRAY, the Archbishop, HASTINGS, and Others: from the other fide, Prince JOHN of LANCASTER, WESTMORELAND, Officers, and Attendants. P. John. You are well encounter'd here, my cousin Mowbray : 5 Good day to you, gentle lord archbishop ;- 5 an iron man, Holinshed says of the Archbishop, that coming foorth amongst them clad in armour, he incouraged and pricked them foorth to take the enterprise in hand." STEEVENS. • Turning the word to fword, &c.] A fimilar thought occurs in the prologue to Gower's Confeffio Amantis, 1554: "Into the sworde the churche kaye "Is turned, and the holy bede," &c. STEEVENS. To us, the speaker in his parliament; Have here up-fwarm'd them. ARCH. 9 Good my lord of Lancaster, I am not here against your father's peace: The time miforder'd doth, in common sense, 2 the imagin'd voice of God himself; ) The old copies, by an apparent errour of the prefs, have-the imagine voice. Mr. Pope introduced the reading of the text. Perhaps Shakspeare wrote To us, the image and voice, &c. So, in a fubfequent scene : " And he, the noble image of my youth." MALONE. I cannot perfuade myself to reject a harmonious reading, that another eminently harth may supply its place. STEEVENS. 7 copied : 2 the fanctities of heaven,] This expreffion Milton has " Around him all the fanclities of heaven workings: i.e. labours of thought. So, in K. Henry V: the forge and working-house of thought." STEEVENS. • You have taken up, ) To take up is to levy, to raife in arms. JOHNSON. in common sense, ) I believe Shakspeare wrote common fence, i. e drove by self-defence. WARBURTON. Common fenfe is the general sense of general danger. JOHNSON. 1 Crowd us, and crush us, to this monstrous form, The which hath been with scorn shov'd from the court, Whereon this Hydra son of war is born: MowB. If not, we ready are to try our fortunes HAST. And though we here fall down, We have fupplies to fecond our attempt; P. JOHN. You are too fhallow, Hastings, much To found the bottom of the after-times. rectly, How far-forth you do like their articles? And fwear here by the honour of my blood, 3 Alluding to Whose dangerous eyes may well be charm'd afleep, the dragon charmed to reft by the spells of Medea. STEEVENS. 4 And So, fuccess of mischief - Success for fucceffion. WARBURTON. and do allow - ) i. e. approve. So, in K. Lear, A& II. "Allow obedience." if your sweet sway MALONE. 1 And fome about him have too lavishly 5 My lord, these griefs shall be with speed redress'd; ARCH. I take your princely word for these re dreffes. P. JOHN. I give it you, and will maintain my word: And thereupon I drink unto your grace. HAST. Go, captain, [To an Officer.] and deliver to the army This news of peace; let them have pay, and part: I know, it will well please them; Hie thee, captain. [Exit Officer. ARCH. To you, my noble lord of Westmoreland. WEST. I pledge your grace: And, if you knew what pains I have bestow'd, to breed this present peace, ARCH. I do not doubt you. WEST. I am glad of it. Health to my lord, and gentle cousin, Mowbray. 5 Discharge your powers - ) It was Westmoreland who made this deceitful proposal, as appears from Holinshed: " The earl of Westmoreland using more policie than the rest, said, whereas our people have been long in armour, let them depart home to their woonted trades: in the meane time let us drink togither in signe of agreement, that the people on both fides may fee it, and know that it is true, that we be light at a point." STEEVENS. MoWB. You wish me health in very happy feason; For I'am, on the fudden, something ill. ARCH. Against ill chances, men are ever merry; But heaviness foreruns the good event. 6 WEST. Therefore be merry, coz; fince sudden forrow Serves to say thus, -Some good thing comes to morrow. ARCH. Believe me, I am paffing light in spirit. MOWB. So much the worse, if your own rule be [Shouts within. P. JOHN. The word of peace is render'd; Hark, how they shout! true. MOWB. This had been cheerful, after victory. ARCH. A peace is of the nature of a conqueft; For then both parties nobly are fubdued, And neither party lofer. P. JOHN. Go, my lord, And let our army be discharged too. [Exit WESTMORELAND. And, good my lord, so please you, let our trains 6 Against ill chances, men are ever merry; Thus the poet defcribes Romeo, as feeling an unaccustom'd degree of cheerfulness just before he hears the news of the death of Juliet. STEEVENS. 7 Therefore bemerry, coz;) That is- Therefore, notwithstanding this fudden impulse to heaviness, be merry; for fuch fudden dejetions forebodę good. JOHNSON. 8-let our trains &c. That is, our army on each part, that we may both fee those that were to have oppofed us. JOHNSON. We ought, perhaps, to read your trains. The Prince knew his own ftrength sufficiently, and only wanted to be acquainted with that of the enemy. The plural, trains, however, seems in favour of the old reading. MALONE. The Prince was defirous to see their train, and therefore, under pretext of affording them a fimilar gratification, proposed that both trains should pass in review. STEEVENS. |