Appendix XIX
By the kindness of Mr. Edmund Gosse I have been enabled to examine and collate the manuscript notes in copies of the first quartos of the following plays in his possession: The Duke of Milan, The Bondman, The Roman Actor, The Renegado, The Picture, The Fatal Dowry, The Emperor of the East, The Maid of Honour. The dates of these quartos range from 1623 to 1632. The poet Swinburne had no doubt that the manuscript notes were due to Massinger himself; the resemblance of the handwriting is certainly indubitable, but as we have no other evidence than that of the corrections themselves, we are forced to be content with the conclusion that the insertions are of a contemporary date. I take the plays in the above order.
The Duke of Milan
I., 1, 23.—This, the last line on the page, has suffered from the binding, and is written in the margin.[588]
I., 1, 56.—The same thing has happened here.
In both cases the writing resembles that of the poet. It may be argued, on the other hand, that it is unlikely that the play should have suffered so soon from binding; it is, however, [pg 216] of course not impossible that the eight plays were bound up together shortly after the year 1632.
V., 2, 203.—Forza. S. inserted before F. (So infra, 218, 234, 256.)
At the end of the play occurs a symbol M which might represent the poet's initial.
The Bondman
I., 1: Timagorus bis in stage-directions, us corrected to as
and also in
I., 1,5
I., 1, 37: I love live
I., 2, 2: I cannot brooke with this
gadding
I., 3, 83: As to the supreame Magistrates Sicilie
surely tenders
" 161: And yet the chu rl added
" 181: made glorious by Achon Action
" 182: gave warrant to her ailes added
couns
" 183: hand heard
" 206: nor defence noe
" 295: ? at end ? deleted
" 319: of slaves our
II., 1, 71: fam'd fann'd
" 87: vayle y deleted
" 144: loose both sent and th inserted after
beauty “loose,” and c in
“sent”
" 153: owe awe
II., 2, 16: manners; yet this morning for
" 57: cunning coḿinge
" 62: ? added
III., 3, 99: too too large second “too” deleted
" 135: leave her off stand her of
" 165: during daring
III., 4, 29: Timandra Timag
" 51: cares feares
IV., 1, 21: still you
IV., 2, 128: when where
" 140: “Pray you, leave mee”
added at end to complete
the line
IV., 3, 145: tempter second t deleted
V., 3, 9: not be deni'de to inserted before “be”
" 38: howsoere the fortune thy
" 103: gods and fautors his
" 193: ) inserted after devices
" 245: Gra. inserted at beginning
of line, (i.e.,
Graccho)
All these corrections are manifestly right, except possibly III., 3, 135 and IV., 1, 21. The addition in IV., 2, 140, though not especially appropriate to the situation, presents us with a type of line much favoured by Massinger.
The Roman Actor
I., 1, 6: stocke socc (i.e., sock)
" 25: parenthesis inserted
after “vice”
" 37: gald l
" 44: The Catta and the Dacie Catti ... Daci
" 46: Jove hasten it ? added
" 49: we obey you full stop added
" 51: the sceane Scaene
" 79: is to eb[589] guilty bee
" 115: grieve greive (“give” is required
by the sense)
I., 2: Enter Domitia and Parthenius “with a letter” added
I., 2, 33: for to be thankfull I woulde
" 44: his plea its
" 86: new workes that dare not Monarches. Pa: added,
do (i.e., Parthenius)
" 88: Parth. Will you dispute Parth. deleted and ?
added.
I., 3, 44: ( ) added
I., 3, 53-4: ( ) added
" 67: condemne condemnd
" 78: which with
" 78: redde (i.e., read) ) added
" 86: Cancillus Camillus
I., 4, 13: Fulcinius and prisoners “and” deleted
led by him
II., 1, 4: yours ; added
" 16: though ( added
" 21: purple ! added
" 22: my heyre ? added
" 182-3: ( ) added
" 217: promped prompted
" 372: ( ) added
" 386: ( ) added
III., 1, 30: words swordes
" 52: retch reach
" 58: the mortall powers iḿortall
" 78: tyrannie tyrant
" 163: steepie steep
" 205: ! added
IV., 1, 8: I thinke not “not” deleted, and
added after “respects”
in 9
" 95: compliant complaint
" 149: ? added
IV., 2, 12: lesse; ; deleted
" 27: pe bee
" 28: you command to me ever you coḿand me
" 39: tremele tremble
" 44: geeat great
" 70: Hypollitus one l substituted
" 123: express thee stop added
" 127: To render me that was ( ) added before
before I hugg'd thee “that” and
An adder in my bosome “before,” and after
“thee” and
“bosome”
IV., 2, 130: Thy pomp and pride— 163 Perpetual vexation
shall not fall.
Note at top of p. 31b: “This page follows the
later.”
Note at top of p. 32a: “This page misplac'd.”
" 182: would coulde
" 190: the iu ice st inverted inserted
here between “iu”
and “ice”
" 191: had with h inverted had
" 196: if yf
" 229: act are
" 242: grim death “grim” deleted
" 295: ( ) added
V., 1, 115: assure as sure
" 142: still'd stil'd
" 228: pinn'd pinion'd
V., 2, 22: iumpe impe
" 78: this murther 'tis
" 85: to sentence her inserted after “to”
I have compared the Malone quarto in the Bodleian Library and find that the mistakes are identical. In other words, The Roman Actor was carelessly printed. Nearly all the corrections made, alike of sense and punctuation, are improvements. The emendation at IV., 2, 28 reads like one made by the author. On the other hand, a careful study of IV., 2, 127 will reveal the fact that the writer's sense has been mistaken, and the omission of “grim” in IV., 2, 242 spoils the rhythm. The curious thing is that the play is full of misprints, which have not been corrected—e.g., III., 2, 143, Anaxerete (and in several other lines); line 154, “Epethite,” for “epithet”; 258, Heccuba. Take again IV., 2, 181: An e is inverted and not corrected; 188, “bttchered” stands for “butchered”; and 189, “lacriledge” for “sacrilege.”
The Renegado
I., 3, 159: receive least losse “the” inserted after
“least.” It spoils the
metre
II., 5, 46: up to the bre a c breache
" ? added
III., 3, 1: I will 'Twill
" 89: like a neighing gennet to mare to her proud
her stallion stallion
III., 5, 114: well made galley mann'd
IV., 1, 114: witnesse of my change “of” deleted: “good”
inserted after “my”
V., 2, 79: Franci. inserted (=
Francisco)
V., 3, 111: Vitelli inserted
III., 3, 89 reads like an author's emendation. On the other hand, the alteration in IV., 1, 114 is not in Massinger's style.
The Picture
Line 37, Poem by T. Jay:
of to heare or
" 38: write neere writ
" 40: admir'd admire
I., 1, 31: satisfie satietie
" 40: ( ) added
" 53: If I am so rich or Sir
" 120: wone him o inserted after “o”
" 154: wracke w deleted
" 190: ere the fight begun s added after “fight”
(=is)
I., 2, 13: bravel ye added
" 71: but deleted and added
again in margin
" 170: examp le added
II., 1, 82: A post. deleted
" 83: “Aside. A Post.”
added in margin
II., 2, 98: “In one here” printed “In one here” deleted
in a separate line after (vide Gifford)
this line
" 103: resolve s added
II., 2, 103: lords of her, like acres
" 174: fierce dame n inserted before “m.”
dame=dam
" 255: solder soldier
" 260: tosses trifles
Here it will be noted that two good emendations are made—I., 1, 53 and II., 2, 103. On the other hand, no notes are made on the last three acts: such a misprint as “ijgobobs” in V., 3, 161 escaping comment.
The Fatal Dowry
Nil.
The Emperor of the East
I., 1, 83: musicke? ? deleted, and “Sir?”
added
I., 2, 169: too to
" 178: Constantinople courte
" 242: them feare their
" 291: care feare
" 323: Nimph Umph
" 347: wooned d deleted
II., 1, 114: in knowledge “the” inserted after
“in”
III., 2, 62: ( ) added
" 93: heaven is most gratious “to you” deleted
to you, madam
" 111: with a kinde impotence “of” inserted after
“kinde”
" 138: I speak it ) added
" 139: I I (so III., 4, 145, 163;
IV., 1, 13)
" 199: ransone m
III., 4, 19: how .sister: !! added
" 29: str stirre
" 44: beg pardon a inserted after “beg”
" 60: my pity t added above “t”
" 80: ? added
III., 4, 132: observe handle
" 146: royall sir comma added
IV., 1, 14: Princesse Empresse
IV., 3, 36: they hee
" 43: fraide defray'd
" 62: camer cancer
" 132: this admiration thie
V., 3, 47: flights s deleted
" 85: niggle iuggle
" 111: I fever if ever
" 190: my grace on all cancelled
The corrections in this play are nearly all good: thus the metre is restored at I., 2, 178, and III., 2, 93, and improved in III., 4, 132. V., 3, 85 is an excellent emendation. On the other hand, I do not think the author would have made such a stupid mistake as the one found at IV., 1, 14, for Chrysapius is there addressing the Empress, about Pulcheria.
The Maid of Honour
Nil.
Note by Mr. Edmund Gosse.
In 1877, when he was breaking up his home at Clifton, and disposing of his books, John Addington Symonds gave Mr. Edmund Gosse a thick volume containing eight first editions of plays by Massinger. The book was bound in worn old calf of the period, and had stamped on the back the author's name. Symonds, in giving the book to Mr. Gosse, called his attention to the contemporary corrections in ink, and said there was “a tradition” that they were in the handwriting of Massinger himself. Mr. Gosse, unfortunately, broke up the volume and had the eight plays separately bound, but the old binding had contained no further indication. In 1882 Swinburne made a careful examination of the corrections, and again in 1883, when he urged that they should be published. He became persuaded that they were made by Massinger himself. Nothing, however, has until now been done [pg 223] with them. The volume came from the Harbord library at Gunton in Norfolk, and was sold, with other old books, at the death of the fourth Lord Suffield in 1853. Symonds bought it of an Oxford bookseller when he was an undergraduate.