Blanch. The lady Conftance speaks not from her faith, But from her need. Conft. Oh, if thou grant my need, Which only lives but by the death of faith, K. John. The king is mov'd, and answers not to this. K. Phil. I am perplex'd, and know not what to say. Pand. What can't thou fay, but will perplex thee more, If thou ftand excommunicate, and curft? K. Phil. Good reverend father, make my perfon yours, And tell me how you would beftow yourself. but they are both too hafty. It fquares very well with the fenfe, and fignifies unfteady. The term is taken from navigation. We fay too, in a fimilar way of speaking, not well manned. WARB. I think Mr. Theobald's correction more plaufible than Dr. Warburton's explanation. A commentator fhould be grave, and therefore I can read thefe notes with proper feverity of attention; but the idea of trimming a lady to keep her feady, would be too rifible for any common power of face. JOHNSON. Trim is drefs. An untrimmed bride is a bride undreft. Could the tempter of mankind affume a femblance in which he was more likely to be fuccefsful? The devil (fays Conftance) raifes to your imagination your bride ftripped of the forbidding forms of drefs, and in the anticipation of future enjoyment, the memory of my wrongs is loft. Ben Jonfon, in his New Inn, fays, STEEVENS. With With all religious strength of facred vows. Heaven knows, they were befmear'd and over-ftain'd Pand. All form is formless, order orderlefs, France, thou may'ft hold a ferpent by the tongue, A fafting tyger fafer by the tooth, Than keep in peace that hand which thou doft hold. 4-fo ftrong in both,] I believe the meaning is, love fo ftrong in both parties. JOHNSON. 5 A cafed lion] All the modern editors read, a chafed lion. Ife little reafon for change. A cofed lion, is a lion irritated by confinement. The author might, however, have written, a chafed lion. STEEVENS, K. Philip. K. Phil. I may disjoin my hand, but not my faith. Is to mistake again; tho' indirect, And falfhood falfhood cures; as fire cools fire, By what thou fwear'ft, against the thing thou fwear'ft: And Is NOT amifs, when it is truly done :] This is the conclufion de travers. We fhould read, Is YET amifs, The Oxford editor, according to his ufual cuftom, will improve it further, and reads, moft amifs. WARBURTON. I rather read, Is't not amifs, when it is truly done? as the alteration is lefs, and the fenfe which Dr. Warburton first discovered is preferved. JoHNSON. But thou hast worn against religion, &c.] In this long speech, the legate is made to fhew his fkill in cafuiftry; and the ftrange heap of quibble and nonfenfe of which it confifts, was intended to ridicule that of the fchools. For when he affumes the politician, at the conclufion of the third act, the author makes him talk at another rate. I mean in that beautiful paffage where he fpeaks of the mifchiefs following the king's lois of his fubjects hearts. This conduct is remarkable, and was intended, I fuppofe, to fhew us how much better politicians the Roman courtiers are, than divines. WARBURTON. And mak'st an oath the furety for thy truth, I am not able to difcover here any thing inconfequent or ridiculoufly fubtle. The propofitions, that the voice of the church is the voice of heaven, and that the pope utters the voice of the church, neither of which Pandulph's auditors would deny, being once granted, the argument here used is irrefiftible ; nor is it eafy, notwithstanding the gingle, to enforce it with greater brevity or propriety: But thou haft worn against religion: By what thou wear'f, against the thing thou fwear'ft : Against an cath the truth thou art unsure To fear, fear only not to be forfworn.] By what. Sir T. HANMER reads, by that. I think it should be rather by which. That is, thou fwear' ft against the thing, by which thou fwear'; that is, against religion. The most formidable difficulty is in thefe lines, And mak'ft an oath the furety for thy truth, This Sir T. HANMER reforms thus, And mak'ft an oath the furety for thy truth, Dr. WARBURTON writes it thus, Against an oath the truth thou art unfure which leaves the paffage to me as obfcure as before, I know not whether there is any corruption beyond the omif fion of a point. The fenfe, after I had confidered it, appeared to me only this: In fwearing by religion against religion, to which thou haf already forn, thou mukeft an oath the fecurity for thy faith again an oath already taken. I will give, fays be, a rule for confcience in these cafes. Thou mayit be in doubt about the matter of an oath; when thou fweareft thou may not be always fure to favear rightly, but let this be thy fettled principle, fwear only not to be forfworn; let not the latter oaths be at variance with the former. Truth, through this whole fpeech, means rectitude of conduct. JOHNSON. Is in thyself rebellion to thyself. And better conquest never canst thou make, Against these giddy, loose suggestions. parts Upon which better part, our prayers come in, So heavy, as thou shalt not shake them off; Faulc. Will't not be? Will not a calve's-skin stop that mouth of thine? Blanch. Upon thy wedding-day? Against the blood that thou haft married? What, fhall our feast be kept with flaughter'd men? Conft. O, upon my knee, pronounce, Made hard with kneeling, I do pray to thee, Blanch. Now fhall I fee thy love.-What motive may Be stronger with thee than the name of wife? Conft. That which upholdeth him, that thee upholds, His honour. Oh, thine honour, Lewis, thine honour! Lewis. I mufe, your majefty doth feem fo cold, Conft. O fair return of banish'd majesty! K. John. |