Hoft. Good captain Peefel, be quiet, it is very late; I beseech you now, aggravate your choler. Pift. These be good humours, indeed. Shall packhorfes 8 And bollow-pamper'd jades of Afia, Which ftaff and his meffmates, as he points to Doll Tear-fheet, in the fame manner as the Turkish monarch pointed to Hiren (Irene) before the whole affembled divan. This dramatic piece I have never seen; and it is mentioned only in that very useful and curious book The Companion to the Play-houfe, as the work of W. Barkstead, published in 1611. Of this play, however, I fuppofe there must have been some arlier edition. In an old comedy, 1608, called Law Tricks; or, Who would have thought it? the fame quotation is likewife introduced, and on a fimilar occafion. The prince Polymetes fays, "What ominous news can Polymetes daunt? Again, in Maffinger's Old Law, "Clown. No dancing for me, we have Siren here. "Cook. Syren! 'twas Hiren the fair Greek, man." STEEVENS. -hollow-pamper'd jades of Afia, &c.] Thefe lines are in part a quotation out of an old abfurd fuftian play, entitled, Tamburlain's Conquefts; or, The Scythian Shepherd. THEOBALD. Thefe lines are addreffed by Tamburlaine to the captive princes who draw his chariot : "Holla, you pamper'd jades of Afia, "What! can you draw but twenty miles a day?" The fame paffage is burlefqued by Beaumont and Fletcher in The Coxcomb. I was furprized to find a fimile, much celebrated by the admirers of Spenfer's Fairy Queen, inferted almoft word for word in this tragedy which enjoyed at once the good fortune of being cenfured by Theobald, and praised by Ben Jonfon. The fir edition of those books of The Fairy Queen, in which it is to be found, was published in 1590, and Tamburlaine made its appearance in the fame year. Every one who is acquainted with the fertility of Spenfer's imagination, muft fuppofe the dramatic writer to have been the plagiarist. "Like to an almond-tree ymounted high "On top of green Selinis, all alone, "With bloffoms brave bedecked daintily, "Whofe tender locks do tremble every one "At every little breath that under heaven is blown." Spenfer. Which cannot go but thirty miles a day, Compare with Cæfars, and with 9 Cannibals, And Trojan Greeks? nay, rather damn them with King Cerberus, and let the welkin roar. Shall we fall foul for toys? Hoft. By my troth, captain, these are very bitter words. Bard. Begone, good Ancient. This will grow to a brawl anon. Pist. Die men, like dogs; give crowns like pins ; I have we not Hiren here? "Like to an almond-ee ymounted high "Of ever-green Selinis, quaintly deck'd Marloe's Tamerlaine. Cannibals,] Cannibal is used by a blunder for Hannibal. This was afterwards copied by Congreve's Bluff and Wittol. Bluff is a character apparently taken from this of Ancient Pistol. JOHNSON. Perhaps the character of a bully on the English ftage might have been originally taken from Piftol; but Congreve feems to have copied his Nol Bluff more immediately from Jonfon's Captain Bobadil. STEEVENS. 1 have we not Hiren here ? Hoft. O' my word, captain, there's none fuch here.] i. e. Shall I fear, that have this trufty and invincible fword by my fide? For, as king Arthur's fwords were called Caliburne and Ron as Edward the Confeffor's, Curtana; as Charlemagne's, Joyeufe; Orlando's, Durindana; Rinaldo's, Fufberta; and Rogero's, Balifarda; fo Pistol, in imitation of thefe heroes, calls his fword Hiren. I have been told, Amadis du Gaul had a fword of this name. Hirir is to ftrike: from hence it seems probable that Hiren may be derived; and fo fignify a swashing, cutting fword.But what wonderful humour is there in the good hoftefs fo innocently mistaking Piftol's drift, fancying that he meant to fight for a whore in the houfe, and therefore telling him, O' my word, captain, there's none fuch here; what the goodjer! do you think, I would deny her? THEOBALD. Hoft. O' my word, captain, there's none fuch here, What the good-jer? do you think I would deny her? I pray, be quiet. 2 Pit. Then feed, and be fat, my fair Calipolis: come, give me fome fack. 3 Si fortuna me tormenta, Spero me contenta. Fear we broad fides? no, let the fiend give fire : Give me fome fack; and, fweet-heart, lye thou there. [Laying down bis fword. 4 Come we to full points here; and are & cætera's no thing? Fal. Piftol, I would be quiet. Pift. 5 Sweet knight, I kifs thy neif. What! we have feen the seven stars. 2 Dol. -feed, and be fat, my fair Calipolis:] This is a burlesque on a line in an old play called The Battel of Alcazar, &c. printed in 1594, in which Muley Mahomet enters to his wife with lyon's flesh on his fword: "Feed then, and faint not, my faire Calypolis." And again, in the fame play, "Hold thee, Calipolis, feed, and faint no more." The part of Pistol is almoft made up of quotations from old abfurd plays. This line is quoted in feveral of the old plays; and Decker, in his Satiromaflix, 1602, has introduced Shakefpeare's burlefque of it. STEEVENS. 3 Si fortuna me tormenta, pero me contenta.] Sir Tho. Hanmer reads, "Si fortuna me tormenta, il fperare me contenta," which is undoubtedly the true reading, but perhaps it was intended that Pittel fhould corrupt it. JOHNSON. Piftol is only a copy of Hannibal Gonfaga, who vaunted on yielding himself a prifoner, as you may read in an old collection of tales, called Wits, Fits, and Fancies. "Si fortuna me tormenta "Il fperanza me contenta." And Sir Richard Hawkins, in his Voyage to the South Sea, 1593. throws out the fame gingling distich on the lofs of his pinnace. FARMER. 4 Come we to full points here, &c.] That is, fhall we stop here, fhall we have no farther entertainment. JOHNSON. 5 Sweet knight, I kifs thy neif.] i. e. I kifs thy fift. Mr. Pope will have it, that neif here is from nativa; i. e. a woman-flave that is born in one's houfe; and that Pistol would kiss Falstaff's domeftic miftrefs Dol Tear-fheet. THEOBALD. Dol. Thruft him down ftairs! I cannot endure fuch a fuftian rafcal. 6 Pift. Thruft him down ftairs! know we not galloway nags ? Fal. Quoit him down, Bardolph, 7 like a fhovegroat fhilling. Nay, if he do nothing but fpeak nothing, he fhall be nothing here. Bard. Come, get you down ftairs. Pift. What, fhall we have incifion? fhall we imbrew? then death Rock me afleep, abridge my doleful days! Why, then let grievous, ghaftly, gaping wounds [Snatching up his fword. Hoft. Here's goodly stuff toward! Fal. Give me my rapier, boy. Dol. I pray thee, Jack, I pray thee, do not draw. [Drawing, and driving Piftol out. Hoft. Here's a goodly tumult! I'll forfwear keeping houfe, before I'll be in these tirrits and frights. So; murther, I warrant now. Alas, alas, put up your naked weapons, put up your naked weapons. Nief, neif, and naf, are certainly law-terms for a womanflave. So in Thoroton's Antiq. of Nottinghamshire--" Every naif or fhe-villain, that took a husband or committed forni"cation, paid marchet for redemption of her blood 5 s. and 4 d." 66 I believe neif is here used for fift. It is ftill ufed in that fenfe in the northern counties, and by B. Jonfon in his Poetafter. "Reach me thy neif.” Again, in The Witch of Edmonton, by Rowley. 6 7 "Oh, fweet Ningle, thy neif once again." STEEVENS. galloway nags?] That is, common hackneys. JOHNS. like a fhove-groat filling.] This expreffion occurs in Every Man in his Humour," made it run as fmooth off the tongue as above-groat fbilling." I fuppofe it to have been a piece of polished metal made use of in the play of fhovel-board. STEEVENS, Dol. I pray thee, Jack, be quiet; the rascal is gone. Ah, you whorfon, little valiant villain, you! Hoft. Are you not hurt i'the groin? methought he made a fhrewd thruft at your belly. [Re-enter Bard. Fal. Have you turn'd him out of doors? Bard. Yes, Sir, the rascal's drunk. You have hurt him, Sir, in the fhoulder. Fal. A rafcal, to brave me! Dol. Ah, you fweet little rogue, you! Alas, poor ape, how thou fweat'ft? Come, let me wipe thy face;-come on, you whorfon chops :-ah, rogue! I love thee-thou art as valorous as Hector of Troy, worth five of Agamemnon; and ten times better than the nine worthies. Ah, villain ! Fal. A rafcally flave! I will tofs the rogue in a blanket. Dol. Do, if thou dar'ft for thy heart : if thou do'st, I'll canvaís thee between a pair of sheets. Enter mufick. Page. The mufick is come, Sir. Fal. Let them play; play, Sirs. Sit on my knee, Doll. A rafcal, bragging flave! the rogue fled from me like quickfilver. 8 Doll. I'faith, and thou follow'd'ft him like a church. Thou whorfon & little tidy Bartholomew boar-pig, when wilt thou leave fighting o' days, and foining o' nights, and begin to patch up thine old body for heaven? 8-little tidy Bartholomew boar-pig,-] For tidy Sir Thomas Hanmer reads tiny; but they are both words of endearment, and equally proper. Bartholomew boar-big is a little pig made of pate, fold at Bartholomew fair, and given to children for a fairing. JOHNSON, Enter |