facere, as it were, replication; or rather, oftentare, to fhow, as it were, his inclination;' after his undressed, unpolished, uneducated, unpruned, untrained, or ra ther unlettered, or rathereft unconfirmed fashion, to infert again my haud credo for a deer.

Dull. I faid, the deer was not a haud credo; 'twas a pricket.

Hol. Twice fod fimplicity, bis cottus; O thou monfter ignorance, how deformed doft thou look?

Nath. Sir, he hath never fed on the dainties that are bred in a book. He hath not eat paper, as it were; he hath not drunk ink. His intellect is not replenished. He is only an animal, only fenfible in the duller parts; And fuch barren plants are fet before us, that we thankful fhould be,

8

Which we taste and feeling are for those fructify in us, more than He.

8

and fuch barren plants are fet before us, that we thankful Should be; which we taste, and feeling are for thofe parts that do fructify in us more than be.] The Words have been ridiculously, and ftupidly, tranfpos'd and corrupted. I read, we thankful fhould be for thofe parts (which we tafte and feel ingradare) that do fructify, &c. The emendation I have offer'd, I hope, reftores the author: At least, it gives him fenfe and grammar: and answers extremely well to his metaphors taken from planting. Ingradare, with the Italians, fignifies, to rife higher and higher; andare di grado in grado, to make a progreffion; and fo at length come to fructify, as the poet expreffes it. WARBURTON.

Sir T. Hanmer reads thus, And fuch barren plants are jet before us, that we thankful fhould be,

parts that do

For thofe parts which we tafte

and feel do fructify in us more

than be.

And Mr Edwards, in his animadverfions on Dr.Warburton's notes, applauds the emendation. I think both the editors mistaken, except that Sir T. Hanmer found the metre though he miffed the fenfe. I read, with a flight change, And fuch barren plants are fet before us, that we thankful fhould be:

When we taste and feeling are for thofe parts that do fructify in us more than be. That is, fuch barren plants are exhibited in the creation, to make us thankful when we have more tafle and feel ng than he, of those parts or qualities which produce fruit in us, and preserve us from being likewife barren plants. Such is the fenfe, just in itself and pious, but a little clouded by the diction of Sir Nathanael.

For

For as it would ill become me to be vain, indiscreet, or a fool;

So were there a patch* fet on learning, to fee him in a fchool.

But omne bene, fay I; being of an old father's mind, Many can brook the weather, that love not the wind. Dull. You two are book-men; can you tell by your wit,

What was a month old at Cain's birth, that's not five weeks old as yet?

Hol. Dilynna, good-man Dull; Dialynna, goodman Dull.

Dull. What is Dictynna?

Nath. A title to Phabe, to Luna, to the Moon.

Hol. The moon was a month old, when Adam was

no more:

And raught not to five weeks, when he came to fivescore.

Th' allufion holds in the exchange.

Dull. 'Tis true, indeed; the collufion holds in the exchange.

Hol. God comfort thy capacity! I fay, the allufion holds in the exchange.

Dull. And I fay, the pollution holds in the exchange; for the moon is never but a month old; and 1 fay befide, that 'twas a pricket that the Princess kill'd.

Hol. Sir Nathanael, will you hear an extemporal epitaph on the death of the deer? and to humour the ignorant, I have call'd the deer the Princefs kill'd, a pricket.

Nath. Perge, good mafter Holofernes, perge; fo it fhall please you to abrogate fcurrility.

The meaning is, to be in a fchool would as ill become a patch, or low fellow, as folly would become me.

Th' allufion holds in the ex

change.] i. e. the riddle is as good when I ufe the name of Adam, as when you use the name of Cain. WARBURTON.

Hol.

Hl. I will fomething affect the letter; for it argues

facility.

The praifeful Princess pierc'd and prickt

A pretty pleafing pricket;

Some fay, a fore; but not a fore,
'Till now made fore with shooting.
The dogs did yell; put L to fore,
Then forrel jumpt from thicket;
Or pricket fore, or else forel,
The people fall a booting.
If fore be fore, then L to fore
Makes fifty fores o' forel !
Of ine fore I an hundred make,
By adding but one more L.

Nath. A rare talent!

I

Dull. if a talent be a claw, look how he claws him with a talent.

Hol. This is a gift that I have; fimple! fimple! a foolish extravagant fpirit, full of forms, figures, fhapes, objects, ideas, apprehenfions, motions, revolutions. These are begot in the ventricle of memory, nourish'd in the womb of pia mater, and deliver'd upon the mellowing of occafion: but the gift is good in those in whom it is acute, and I am thankful for it.

Nath. Sir, I praise the Lord for you, and fo may my parishioners; for their fons are well tutor'd by you, and their daughters profit very greatly under you; you are a good member of the commonwealth.

Hol. Mebercle, if their fons be ingenuous, they fhall want no inftruction: if their daughters be capable, I

Makes fifty fores, O forrel!] We should read, of jorel, alluding to L being the numeral for 50. Concerning the beasts of shafe, whereof the Buck, being the firft, is called as followeth;

the first year a Fawn; the second year a Pricket; the third year, a Sorel; the fourth year a Sore; the fifth year, a buck of the fift head, &c. Manhood of the Laws of the Foreft, p. 44. WARB.

will put it to them. But vir fapit, qui pauca loquitur a foul feminine faluteth us.

Enter Jaquenetta, and Coftard.

Jaq. God give you good morrow, mafter Parfon. Hol. Mafter Parfon, quafi Perfon. And if one hould be pierc'd, which is the one?

Coft: Marry, mafter school-mafter, he that is likest to a hogfhead.

Hol. Of piercing á hogfhead. A good Luftre of conceit in a turf of earth, fire enough for a flint, pearl enough for a fwine: 'Tis pretty, it is well.

Jaq. Good mafter Parfon, be fo good as read me this letter; it was given me by Coftard, and fent me from Don Armatho; I befeech you, read it.

2

Hol. Faufte, precor, gelida quando pecus omne fub

umbrâ.

2 Nath. Faufte; precor; gelida] Though all the Editions concur to give this Speech to Sir Nathanael, yet, as Dr. Thirlby ingenioufly obferv'd to me, it is evident, it must belong to Holofernes. The Curate is employ'd in reading the Letter to himfelf; and while he is doing fo, that the Stage may not ftand ftill, Holofernes either pulls out a Book, or, repeating fome Verfe by heart from Mantuanus,comments upon the Character of that Poet. Baptifta Spagnolus, (furnamed Mantuanus, from the Place of his Birth) was a Writer of Poems, who flourish'd towards the latter End of the 15th Century. THEOBALD. Faufte, precor gelida, &c. A

note of La Monnoye's on these very words in Les Contes des Periers, Nov. 42. will explain the humour of the quotation, and fhew how well Shakespeare has fuftained the character of his pedant.-Il defigne le Carme de Baptifte Mantuan, dont au commencement du 16 fiecle on foit publiquement à Paris les Poeftes; fi celebres alors, que, comme dit plai famment Farnabe, dans fa preface fur Martial, les Pedans ne fai Joient nulle difficulté de preferer à 'Arma virumque cano, le Faufte, precor, gelida, c'est-a dire, à 'Eneide de Virgile les Eclogues de Mantuan, le premiere defquelles commence par Faufte, precor gelida. WARBURTON.

Ru

Riminat, and fo forth. Ah, good old Mantuan, I may speak of thee as the traveller doth of Venice; 3 Vinegia, Vinegia! qui non te vedi, ei non te pregia. Old Mantuan, old Mantuan! Who understandeth thee not, loves thee not;-it re fol la mi fa. Under pardon, Sir, what are the contents? or rather, as Horace fays in his What! my foul! verses?

Nath. Ay, Sir, and very learned.

Hol. Let me hear a staff, a ftanza, a verfe; Lege, Domine.

Nath. If love make me forfworn, how fhall I fwear to love?

Ah, never faith could hold, if not to beauty vow'd; Tho' to myself forfworn, to thee I'll faithful prove; Those thoughts to me were oaks, to thee like offers bow'd.

Study his biafs leaves, and makes his book thine eyes; Where all those pleasures live, that art would comprehend:

If knowledge be the mark, to know thee fhall fuffice; Well learned is that tongue, that well can thee commend.

All ignorant that Soul, that fees thee without wonder: Which is to me fome pra.fe, that I thy parts ad

mire.

Thy eye Jove's lightning bears, thy voice is dreadfulthunder;

Which, not to anger bent, is musick, and sweet fire.

3 In old Editions: Venechi, venache a, qui non te vide, ei non te piarch.] And thus Mr. Rowe, and Mr. Pope. But that Poets, Scholars, and Linguists, could not restore this little Scrap of true Italian, is to me unaccountable. Our Author is applying the Praises of Mantuanus to a common proverbial Sentence, faid of Venice. Vinegia, Vinegia! qui

VOL. II.

non te vedi, ei non te pregia. O Venice, Venice, he, who has never seen thee, has thee not in Efteem. THEOBALD.

The proverb, as I am informed, is this; He that fees Venice little, values it much; be that fees it much, values it little. But I fuppofe Mr. Theobald is right, for the true proverb would not ferve the speaker's purpose.

M

Ce