NOTES ON AS YOU LIKE IT.

p. 271.

p. 272.

p. 274.

ACT FIRST.

SCENE I.

but poor a thousand crowns : Thus the original; but all modern editors, except Mr. Knight, read "a poor thousand crowns," and thus destroy a textual trait characteristic of Shakespeare's time- the separation of the adjective from the noun which it qualified, by an article, or a pronoun; as "good my coz," Sc. 2, and "good my liege," Sc. 3, of this very play. It is almost needless to remark that the construction of this speech shows that Orlando and Adam enter in the midst of a conversation.

My brother Jaques he keeps at school":— We are to understand school' as meaning a university, not a primary school. The schools of Oxford, or of Padua, are frequently mentioned in the literature of Shakespeare's day; and we still speak of all the learning of the schools. This Note would seem almost superfluous, had not serious efforts been made, and at no remote period, to defend Shakespeare from a charge of inconsistency in making an elder brother of his hero a school-boy! In the old tale the second brother is also at schoole.'

Warburton

stays me here at home unkept": proposed styes,' which is but plausible. The similarity of thought between 'stay' and 'keep' is necessary to the antithetical point of the sentence.

and be naught a while": -"Be naught,' or 'go and be naught,' was formerly a petty execration of common usage between anger and contempt, which has been supplied by others that are worse, as be hanged,' 'be cursed,' &c.; a while,' or 'the while,' was frequently added merely to round the phrase." Nares' Glossary.

p. 276.

of the word in the original, in this and in other plays, is wrastle; but as wrestle' and 'wrest' were in common use in Shakespeare's time, and there is no etymological reason for returning to the old orthography, the modern is given.

this gamester" : — Gamester' was used much in the sense which we attach to the cant terms 'sportingman,' or man of the fancy.'

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p. 278.

p. 279.

p. 280.

p. 281.

SCENE II.

and would you yet [I] were merrier necessary to the sense, is omitted in the original. supplied by Pope.

: — ' I‚' It was

Touchstone is called Clown

"Enter TOUCHSTONE
here and elsewhere in the original.

who, perceiving our natural wits," &c. :- The folio has perceiveth a manifest error, which was cor

rected in the second folio.

"Cel. My father's love," &c. : The original incorrectly assigns this speech to Rosalind. Duke Frederick is Celia's father. 'Old' is a mere epithet, which here has no reference to age. Taxation,' in Celia's reply, means censure, satire. We still say, for instance, she taxed him with inconstancy, and he taxed her with folly;' and in Act II. Sc. 7, Jaques says of his general censures,

Why then, my taxing like a wild goose flies,
Unclaim'd of any man."

you have lost much good sport" :— Mr. Collier's folio of 1632 has “good spo't," a reading which Mr. Collier himself supposes to be indicative of an affected style of speech on Le Beau's part, and to be justified by Celia's question, in reply, "Of what colour?

"With bills on their necks," &c.: Some editors have supposed that there is an allusion here to the weapon called “the bill," which was often spoken of as carried on the neck instead of the shoulder; and it is worthy of note that, 'taking his forest bill on his neck,' is an expression which occurs several times in the tale on which this comedy is founded.

there is such odds in the men" : — - The original has "the man," which Mr. Collier and others would retain as meaning 'such a difference in the man as compared with Charles the wrestler.' But this is an unwarrantable stretch of language. There was doubtless a misprint of man' for men.'

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p. 283.

p. 285.

D 286.

"I attend them, with all respect and duty": Le Beau delivers the message as from the Princess, because he had received it only from Celia; but Orlando, who sees two Princesses, naturally replies that he will wait on them.

if you saw yourself with your eyes,” &c. : - It would seem very superfluous to point out that 'eyes' and 'judgment' are the emphatic words here, were it not that Warburton proposed to read our eyes' and 'our judgment,' and met with some supporters.

"How do'st thou, Charles?" See Note on "which on my earth do'st shine." Love's Labour's Lost, Act IV. Sc. 3, p. 464.

as you have exceeded all promise : The second folio has "exceeded all in promise,” which Mr. Halliwell adopts. But Orlando had not exceeded all in promise; he, or his performances, exceeded all promise.

“Is but a quintain,” &c. : — A 'quintain' was a machine used in the preparatory sports of the tilt-yard. It was composed of an upright, and a rotatory arm, one end of which was loaded. The unloaded end being struck with sword or spear, the arm revolved quickly and returned the blow with the loaded end, unless the assailant were nimble enough to escape.

"That he misconsters all":-This is not a mis-spelling or loose spelling of 'misconstrue,' but the old form of the word. It therefore should be retained. A similar reason justifies the retention of "than I to speak of," in the last line of this speech. That was the grammatical form in use in Shakespeare's day, which we should not change `unless we undertake to have our Shakespeare according to Lindley Murray - that is, to make his works conform to laws which he did not know.

the smaller is his daughter": - The original has "taller," a manifest corruption, as we learn from Rosalind herself, in the very next Scene. Pope read 'shorter;' 'smaller,' which conforms more to the old text, was found in Mr. Collier's folio of 1632.

SCENE III.

"No, some of it is for my child's father" :— Rowe read "my father's child," and he is supported by Coleridge and Mr. Knight, on the ground that, by the original text, "a most indelicate anticipation is put into the mouth of Rosalind without reason." To this objection an editor of Shakespeare must find an all-sufficient answer in the facts, that the original edition has "my childes father,"

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p. 287.

p. 288.

p. 289.

that this reading has a clear and unmistakable meaning, and that that meaning is entirely consistent with the notions of propriety in Shakespeare's time, with his treatment of the female character throughout his works, and with the words and thoughts which he assigns to Rosalind and Celia themselves elsewhere in this very play. There are psychological reasons also which sustain the original text: these the reader will find set forth in Shakespeare's Scholar.

doth he not deserve well": - It can hardly be necessary to point out that Celia means deserve well to be hated,' and that Rosalind purposely perverts her cousin's words.

dispatch you with your safest haste": Mr. Singer proposes "swiftest haste;" and "fastest haste was found in Mr. Collier's folio of 1632. These suggestions are plausible, but superfluous : in safest haste' there is an unconscious anticipation by the Duke of his subsequent threat. Beside, Shakespeare would not needlessly write fastest haste.'

the likelihood depends": The original has "likelihoods." It is barely possible that this may not be a misprint.

coupled and inseparable” : — -The second folio has "inseparate,” a reading so consonant with Shakespeare's phraseology, and so rhythmically advantageous to the line, that it would be acceptable without question, were not authority against it.

"No hath not?" Hitherto these words have been incorrectly printed by modern editors as two questionsNo? hath not? But they are an example of a peculiar idiomatic use of the negative, to which attention was first directed by the Rev. W. R. Arrowsmith, in Notes and Queries, Vol. VII. p. 520. No did,' 'no will,' 'no had,' &c., were used in the sense of 'did not,' 'will not,' 'had not,' &c.; as, for instance, there being many such :"Sol. and the whole world yeilds not a workman that can frame the like.

Fort. No does? Old Fortunatus. Dilke's Old Eng. Plays, Vol. III. p. 140.

"Careless. No forsooth; I do not knowe any such, nor have I heard of him that I wot of.

Martin. No have, forsooth?" Fox's Acts and Monu

ments.

"Which teacheth thee that thou and I am one Thus the original. Warburton read "which teacheth

me," &c., and was generally followed. But as Dr. Johnson remarked, "the sense of the established text is not remote or obscure. Where would be the absurdity of saying, You know not the law which teaches you to do right?" Still it remains true that Celia would naturally reproach her cousin for the lack of that completeness of love which she herself possessed. The phrase “thou and I am one" is not at variance with the custom of the time; but as that had begun to conform modern rules of concord, perhaps there is here an easy misprint of 'am' forare.'

"Shall we be sunder'd?" The original abbreviates by the elision of the first e-"sund'red;" and it is noteworthy that that is the form of the contracted participle, usually, if not always, found in books of Shakespeare's time; as, for instance, in this play, "a poore sequest❜red stag," Act II. Sc. 1; "that sacred pity hath engendred, Ibid., Sc. 7; "that to your wanting may be minisťred, Ibid.; "As freind rememb'red not," Ibid.; "Wint'red garments must be lined," Act III. Sc. 2, &c, &c. The apostrophe is often omitted. It seems more than probable that this uniformity is not accidental; and it is quite possible that it represents the colloquial form of the contraction.

to take the charge upon you":- The original has "your change." The second folio partly rectified the obvious error by reading "your charge." The printer mistook ye charge' for 'yr change,' an error easily committed.

"I am more than common tall": In the old tale Rosalind also alludes to her tall stature; and she and her cousin assume the names of Ganimede and Aliena.

"A gallant curtle-axe":— Coutelas was the French name for a short, heavy sword. It was corrupted into 'curtle-axe,' and is now more correctly represented by 'cutlass.'

a swashing and a martial outside": - Baret's Alvearie, 1580, defines, "To swash, or to make a noise with swordes against tergats." Tergats' were shields. Hence we have swash-buckler.'

"Now go we in content":- The original, by an accidental transposition, has "go in we,” &c.