PRELIMINARY REMARKS. I HAVE not hitherto discovered any novel on which this comedy appears to have been founded; and yet the story of it has most of the features of an ancient romance. STEEVENS. I suspect that there is an error in the title of this play, which I believe, should be-" Love's Labours Lost." M. MASON. Love's Labour's Lost, I conjecture to have been written in 1594. See An Attempt to ascertain the Order of Shakspeare's Plays. MALONE. The first edition was published in 4to. in 1598, W. W. for Cuthbert Burby. BosWELL. BOYET, Lords, attending on the Princess MERCADE, Sof France. DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO, a fantastical Spaniard. SIR NATHANIEL, a curate. HOLOFERNES, a schoolmaster. COSTARD, a clown. MOTH, page to Armado. This enumeration of the persons was made by Mr. Rowe. JOHNSON. 2 Berowne in the old editions throughout. BoswELL. LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST. ACT I. SCENE I. Navarre. A Park, with a Palace in it. Enter the King, BIRON, LONGAVILLE, and DUMAIN. And then grace us in the disgrace of death; And make us heirs of all eternity. Therefore, brave conquerors!-for so you are, And the huge army of the world's desires,— You three, Birón, Dumain, and Longaville, me, My fellow-scholars, and to keep those statutes, Your oaths are past, and now subscribe your names; That his own hand may strike his honour down, If you are arm'd to do, as sworn to do, BIRON. I can but say their protestation over, (When I was wont to think no harm all night, * Folio, bankerout, omitting quite. 3your deep OATH,] The old copies have-oaths. Corrected by Mr. Steevens. MALone. 4 With ALL THESE living in PHILOSOPHY.] The style of the rhyming scenes in this play is often entangled and obscure. I know not certainly to what all these is to be referred; I suppose he means, that he finds love, pomp, and wealth in philosophy. JOHNSON. By all these, Dumain means the King, Biron, &c. to whom he may be supposed to point, and with whom he is going to live in philosophical retirement. A. C. |