So the 4tos and the editors read; the folio inserts fed well after 'well,' which may be right, as six-foot lines abound in this play. With Singer I have therefore retained it.
Both 4to and folio read 'it was hers'; the 2nd folio 'if it was hers.' It has been justly observed that the printer took yt (the abbreviation of that) for it.
The first 'keeps' was plainly produced, in the usual way, by the second. Pope read feels, which was afterwards found in 4to 1630, and is now generally received. Southern had read knows, which seems equally good; and the same is the reading of Collier's folio. I doubt much, however, if the original word was not makes, which I have given, corresponding with 'keeps' in not personifying. Feels is evidently a conjecture in 4to 1630, as well as by Pope, as having some resemblance to 'keeps'; but in these cases no resemblance need be sought. (See Introd. p. 65.) For 'icy' Singer reads yesty, most needlessly.
I have given it in my Edition 'A frank one too'; but no addition was necessary. I made an error for the sake of metre, and, I think, weakened the passage.
Perhaps the word the poet wrote was induces.
In the third line I think that for 'convinced or' we should read 'convinc'd her and'; the confusion of 'or' and her was easy: and must of course be added to get sense. See Introd. p. 6
The 4to reads 'had he ruin'd.' 'Heavens' is frequently used instead of Heaven.
This is the reading of the 4to; the folio has 'The' for 'A,' and 'and moving' for 'unmoving.' For 'Time' Rowe, who is generally followed, read hand; for 'slow unmoving' Mason read 'slowly moving'; Hunter read 'of the Time for scorn.' I, however, see no need of change. 'The Time of scorn' is the scornful age or world, a frequent sense of 'time'; and we should print "To point his slow—unmoving finger at," the latter term being a correction of the former.
So also in two succeeding lines of this speech, and in all a syllable is wanting. It is really amazing how such an omission—destructive alike of energy and of metre—could not only have been made by the printer, but remain unnoticed by all the editors. As sin is wanting in both 4to and folio, it is clear that the former was printed from the latter, and not from a MS. In the last line I read 'hear of it.'
For 'mad,' which is certainly wrong, Theobald read bad, and I think he was right. 'Proved bad' answers to our present turned out bad. Regarding bad as rather low and trivial, I read in my Edition false, as that is the term in the ballad. I thought 'mad' might have been suggested by 'maid' in the preceding line.
As 'hies' is always, as far as I am aware, followed by some qualifying term, I add on or with the 4to, 'apace.'
I adopt this punctuation of Warburton's. He was going to say something further, but he stops, and contents himself with repeating his words.
So the 4to; the folio for 'thine' has 'thy light,' which is far less effective.
It would not be possible, in the whole compass of poetry, to find a more glaring absurdity than this of making Desdemona speak after she had been smothered.
The folio reads 'Iudean,' and there has been great controversy on the subject. In any case the allusion is unknown.
The reading of the 4to; the folio has 'medicinable.' Mr. Dyce doubts if at that time 'medicinal,' with the accent on the penult, was in use; but this place might seem to prove it, and it may be so pronounced also in W. Tale, ii. 3. (See my note on Milton's Sam. Ag. 627.) In it the French and not the Latin accentuation was followed.
Perhaps here, as elsewhere, 'Where' has taken the place of When.
For a similar omission, also injurious to the metre, see on Twelfth Night, ii. 5.
The folio has walks; the obvious correction is from Collier's folio.
'In' is the necessary correction of Is of the folio. See on K. John, iv. 2.
The correction of Theobald, Ides, has been universally and properly adopted; for 'first' must have been a printer's error.
Theobald read fourteen, which was the exact number; but the error was the poet's.
Warburton read fate, which Singer justifies; Mason faith.
The context demands the past tense here also. The 2nd folio properly therefore read did for 'do.' See on Mer. of Ven. ii. 3.
'Were' is Theobald's correction of hear of the original. Upton read equally well, are.
I am rather dubious of 'stains'; as the meaning is not clear.
As, so far as I know, the subs. couching does not occur anywhere else, we might read, with Hanmer, crouchings; for nothing is more common than the omission of a letter by the printer. Singer, however, quotes from Huloet, "Cowch like a dogge, Procumbo;" and we may see a reference to the dog in the whole speech. For fire I would read stir.
As the second line does not make sense, we may either, with Capell, read no for 'in,' or, deeming the error to lie in 'malice,' substitute friendship, or some other word.
Johnson, followed by Dyce, prefers lives. I do not see much to be gained by the change.
For 'from' the 2nd folio properly read for.
The 2nd folio properly read wit, i.e. mental power.
I see no objection to this line; but Theobald read, and Dyce approves of, 'abject arts.'
I most willingly adopt this excellent addition of Malone's, which is every way to be preferred to the usually adopted reading of the 2nd folio, "and our best means stretched out." Of Malone's reading Mr. Collier says, "which is not only a bad verse, but is supported by no authority," as if the 2nd folio was an authority! And "a bad verse!" Mr. Collier has strange ideas of metre.
Some read 'And let me'; but 'Yet,' in which I had been anticipated, seems preferable.
Theobald's judicious correction; the folio has baite.
The proper word is his, not 'my'; but it may be one of the poet's usual slips.
The reading of the folio is 'added.' Both Singer and Dyce agree in the correction.
For 'as' we should, I think, read at, as I have done.
It might be better to read 'And a,' or rather A. See on Temp. i. 2.
The 1st folio reads 'who'; the correction was made in the 2nd.
Both Southern and Warburton read charge.
Warburton's correction of 'foretel' of the folio.
So 2nd folio; the 1st has Save.
'Minds' is Warburton's correction of 'winds.' This confusion of m and w is not unusual. In King John (v. 7) we have, "And the siege is now against the wind;" and in Cymb. (ii. 4) "Now wingled with their courages."
The usual correction, leave, is right. Two Gent. i. 1.
'Wish' here signifies recommend, advise. I think we should read 'wish you,' as it is always followed by its object when used in this sense.
The proper word is Our. See on Cor. iii. 1.
Collier's folio reads Fall. I agree with it.
I read 'immature,' for the negative is required.
Warburton, who has been generally followed, made the correction dear'd. But there is no such verb. I read dear. "I shall be lov'd when I am lack'd" (Cor. iv. 1). Come for became occurs also in "so came I a widow" (2 Hen. IV. ii. 3).
Theobald read justly lackeying. I read fro for 'back.'
I read 'With what both.'
It is thus I would give force to the passage. The appeal to those present is feeble.
There can be no doubt that 'arm-gaunt' is a printer's blunder. The best correction seems to be that of Boaden and myself, arrogant; we might also read ardent, as we have "a hot and fiery steed" (Rich. II. v. 2); or angry, as in F. Q. i. 1, 1. I had, like M. Mason, conjectured termagant; but that term is never applied to an animal. In favour of arrogant, Singer quoted from the Arauco Domado of Lope de Vega
In Spanish, I may observe, caballo arrogante is simply a gallant, spirited horse. See Calderon, La Niña de Gomez Arias. II. There is not, as far as I know, any instance of the use of arrogant in this sense in English; and it would be a curious circumstance if Shakespeare had learned the Spanish sense of it.
I see no sense in in 'wand.' Some editors read wan'd, taking perhaps the image from the moon. I have read wanton, in the sense of soft, yielding like "the wanton rushes" (1 H. IV. iii. 1), "the wanton air" (L. L. L. iv. 3), which would also suit the metre better. I, however, strongly suspect that the poet's word may have been tann'd, spelt of course tand, so that a printer's error was very obvious. She is more than once called gypsy; she has "a tawny front" (i. 1); and she says of herself (i. 5.) that she is "with Phœbus' amorous kisses black." In Son. cxv. we have "tan sacred beauty;" and in Son. lxii.,
'Salt' is wanton, lascivious; perhaps from salax.
I am not satisfied with this passage. Perhaps for 'their' and 'you' we should read your and them, as I have done.
The negative was properly inserted by Rowe.
Hanmer read 'but tales'; Steevens 'as tales'; Capell 'then be tales.' We might also read 'mere tales.'
I give 'By land' to Cæsar. See on As You Like it, ii. 1.
With Collier's folio I read and for 'of.' See Final Note to Comus in my Milton.
'Swell' (sc. with pride, i.e. are elate) no doubt makes good sense; but the words of North's Plutarch are "Others tending the tackle and ropes of the barge, out of which there came a wonderful sweet savour of perfumes, that perfumed the wharf's side." Smell, the reading of Collier's folio, is therefore probably right. In the last line 'the' should, I think, be their.
We should probably read notion, i.e. idea, mind.
Upton read afear'd, and, I think, rightly; a Fear was a source of terror, not an object of it. In the corresponding place of North's Plutarch the word is afraid.
Theobald's correction of 'tawny-fine' of the folio.
I adopt without hesitation the excellent correction of Rain for 'Ram.' "Rain sacrificial whisperings in his ear" (Tim. i. 1). "In measure rain thy joy" (Mer. of Ven. iii. 2).
We might also read, as is usually done, 'why so tart a favour?'
The the was properly inserted in the 2nd folio.
'Bear' is, as usual, one of Theobald's excellent corrections for 'beat' of the folio; 'holding' is burthen.
For 'Grants' we might read Gains.
Theobald, who is always followed, read wept, but, it seems to me, from not understanding the passage: what is meant is, accept this explanation till you see me weep from pure feeling, which Antony was no more capable of doing than I am.
The critics give examples of 'stain' in the sense of eclipse, throw into the shade.
The critics properly read world and hast.
It is strange that the one, required both by sense and metre, was first added by Johnson.
For 'abstract,' which makes no sense, Warburton read obstruct, which has been generally adopted; but as this subst. occurs nowhere else, I prefer to read obstruction.
As no good sense has been made of 'who,' I read they.
It is, however, I think, probable that a proper name has been lost.
For 'wrong-led' Collier's folio reads well wronged.
I would read God.
For 'ribaudred' Steevens and Malone read ribald-rid, and Tyrwhitt hag for 'nag.' There is no need of change. 'Ribaudred' is vile, obscene; and 'nag,' like hackney, etc., was used of unchaste women.
It should perhaps be ''Tis easy way.'