THE LIFE OF HENRY V.
Act I.
Sc. 1.
"Cant. The King is full of grace and fair regard,
And a true lover of the Holy Church.
Ely. The courses of his youth promis'd it not.
Cant. The breath no sooner left his father's body," etc.
It is really marvellous that for two centuries and a half no critic—not even Theobald or Tyrwhitt—should have discerned that this was the true distribution of the speeches. See Introd. p. [48].
"Upon our spiritual convocation."
This is no doubt metrical; but it is not easy to make sense of it. I suspect that the poet may have written 'Upon the part of,' the verse still being metrical.
Sc. 2.
"They know your Grace has cause and means and might ..."
There is an evident aposiopesis.
"To fill King Edward's fame with prisoner-kings,
And make their chronicle as rich with praise," etc.
Collier's folio reads (I think, well) train for 'fame,' and his or her for 'their.'
"To tear and havoc more than she can eat."
'Tear' is Rowe's; the 4tos have spoil, the folio tame.
"For government, though high and low and lower."
It might seem that 'though' was a misprint for through. In M. for M. iii. 1, the folio has through for though.
"They have a king and officers of all sorts."
"And therefore living hence did give ourselves
To barbarous licence."
We should surely read thence or here for 'hence.'
"Be like a king and show my sail of greatness."
Perhaps 'sail' should be full; or 'my sail' me full.
Act II.
"Chor. Linger your patience on, and we'll digest
The abuse of distance, force a play."
Here 'Linger' is a causative verb. (Introd. p. [71]). Editors, in their ignorance of the meaning of 'digest,' to regulate, arrange, read well. By 'abuse of distance' is meant the abuse we make of it by transporting the audience from one country to another. For 'force a play,' which makes no sense, and to complete the measure, I read 'as we forge our play,' as we being, I am almost certain, the omitted words; forge is frequent in the sense of shape, form. The confusion of our—the r being hardly sounded—and a was natural; it occurs again, I think, in 2 Hen. VI. iv. 1. At the end of this Chorus we have "We'll not offend one stomach with our play," where, by the way, the allusion is to sea-sickness.
"The sum is paid, the traitors are agreed."
This line is out of place. In my Edition I have put it after "Confirm'd conspiracy," etc., evidently its right place.
"But till the King come forth—and not till then."
For the first 'till,' caused in the usual manner, I read ere; for it is just before the King appears that the scene changes.
Sc. 1.
"There shall be smiles."
Farmer and Collier's folio read smites. "Norfolk, we must have knocks" (R. III. v. 3). In Ant. and Cleop. iii. 2, we have also smile for smite. See also Tr. and Cr. v. 11.
"And there's an end."
The 4tos read "And there's the humour of it," which is perhaps better.
"O well a day, Lady, if he be not hewn now."
Theobald reads drawn for 'hewn,' but no change seems necessary; for 'hewn' is i. q. hewing. It may also have been meant to show her ignorance of language.
"Will you shog off now? I would have you solus."
Sc. 2.
"And on his more advice we pardon him."
Collier's folio properly reads our for 'his.'
"Who are the late commissioners?"
As they were future, 'late' can hardly be right.
"To furnish him with all appertinents."
The 2nd folio supplied him.
"And other devils that suggest by treasons."
He may have written bye-treasons.
"With patches, colours, and with forms being fetch'd."
It might be better to omit 'being.'
"Why so didst thou; or seem they grave and learned."
"For me, the gold of France did not seduce me."
"Which I, in sufferance, heartily will rejoice at."
Sc. 3.
"And 'a babbled of green fields."
The folio reads 'and a table of green fields'; the text is the correction of Theobald, which has been universally accepted; yet talkt would come nearer to table than 'babbled,' and it also better suits the metre; in which I find I had been anticipated by an Anon. ap. Theobald. The Dame afterwards says he "talked of the Whore of Babylon." Collier's folio reads 'for his nose was as sharp as a pen on a table of green freeze,' which is ingenious, but nothing more. The nib of a pen in such a situation is usually black, and so does not strike the eye. 'A table of green fells' has also been conjectured. It has been supposed that Falstaff's mind was wandering, and so may have reverted to his youthful days in the country. But may not he, who must have been a man of some education, have been repeating the 23rd Psalm (so well suited to one in his condition), in which are the words "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures"?
Sc. 4.
"Whiles that his mountain sire—on mountain standing."
We have already had (i. 2), "Whiles his most mighty father on a hill;" and 'mighty' might be the word here also, instead of the almost oriental 'mountain,' suggested by what followed.
Act III.
Sc. 1.
"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more,
Or fill the walls up with our English dead."
Johnson thought that a line was lost here. I would add In, in! at the end of the first line, and read 'to' for 'unto,' the printer's word. Introd. p. [67].
Sc. 3.
"Defile the locks of your shrill-shrieking daughters."
'Defile' is Pope's correction of desire in the folio; and it probably is right. It makes very good sense.
Sc. 5.
"Can sodden water
A drench for surrein'd steeds, their barley broth," etc.
For 'surrein'd' the 4tos read swolne. Steevens quotes from Jack Drum's Entertainment, 1601:—
"Writes he not a good cordial sappy style?—
A surrein'd jaded wit, but he rubs on."
'Surrein'd' may mean overriden. In Massinger we have,
"Let passion work, or, like a hot-rein'd horse,
'Twill quickly tire itself."
Unnat. Comb. iv. 2.
Shakespeare may, however, have written surbeat, or some other word.
"Poor may we call them in their native lords."
Sense and metre seem to require may.
"They bid us go to the English dancing-schools."
"And for achievement offer us his ransom."
Mr. Staunton proposes 'fore achievement'; but no change need be made.
Sc. 6.
"Which they trick up with new-tuned oaths."
For 'tuned' Pope read turned; Collier's folio coined.
Sc. 7.
"The Dolphin longs for the morning."
The metre requires a syllable.
Act IV.
Chor. "Thawing cold fear. Then, mean and gentle all."
'Then' is Theobald's correction, and a true and good one, of that of the folio. See Introd. p. [68].
Sc. 1.
"Subject unto the breath of every fool."
"What is thy soul of adoration?"
It would seem better to read source. Johnson read 'O adoration!'
"He ne'er sees horrid Night, the child of Hell," etc.
"The sense of reckoning of the opposed numbers.
Pluck their hearts from them not to-day, O Lord!
Oh, not to-day!—Think not upon the fault," etc.
So I punctuate. Many editors follow Tyrwhitt in reading 'if the' for 'of the' in the first line. Theobald read lest for 'of.'
Sc. 2.
"And doubt them with superfluous courage."
For 'doubt' Pope read daunt; Rowe, followed by Dyce and Cambridge editors, dout. As the 'superfluous courage' seems to be the blood spun out, the word may be daub.
"I stay but for my guard. On to the field!"
A most happy emendation was that made by Dr. Thackeray, and by an Anon. ap. Rann: "I stay but for my guidon.—To the field!" This is amply confirmed by the following line, and by this passage of Holinshed, "The Duke of Brabant, when his standard was not come, caused a banner to be taken from a trumpet and fastened to a spear, the which he commanded to be borne before him instead of a standard." Guidon is a term still in use in the cavalry service.
Sc. 3.
"He that shall see this day and live to old age."
Pope, who has been usually followed, transposed 'see' and 'live.' I rather think to was omitted, and see no necessity for transposition.
"They'll be in fresher robes; for they will pluck," etc.
The 4to and folio both, which all the editors follow, read 'or they'; my own and Hanmer's conjecture is 'for they,' which alone gives sense, by explaining how they would be 'in fresher robes.' How easily might the f have been lost or omitted!
Sc. 4.
"Calitay! Callinó castorè me!"
I have ventured to change the 'Qualtitie' of the folio to Calitay, the English mode of pronouncing qualité, with the accent on the last syllable; which suggests Callino, etc., for which see [Index] s. v. The French qualité would never suggest quality to an illiterate Englishman.
Sc. 5.
"Let us die in ... Once möre back again."
By this punctuation the reading of the folio becomes clear. Knight, whom late editors follow, reads 'in honour,' which occurs in the 4to.
Sc. 7.
"To book our dead and then to bury them."
Collier's folio reads look, which might seem preferable.
Sc. 8.
"Now, Herald, are the dead all numbered?"
It might be better to read 'the dead on both sides.'
Act V.
Chor. "And the Emperor's coming in behalf of France."
Sc. 1.
"I eat and eat I swear...."
I read, with Johnson, 'eke' for the second 'eat,' as more Pistolian.
Sc. 2.
"So happy be the issue, brother Ireland."
I retain this reading of the folio; for I cannot see what should make the printer change England to Ireland, while the Queen may have done so to vary the title.
"Is be full of deceits; dat is de princess say."
"Wanting the scythe all uncorrected, rank."
The folio reads 'withal' for 'all.'
"And as our vineyards, fallows, meads, and hedges."
The folio has 'all our,' which the context rejects. 'As' is the reading of Capell.
"Sauf votre honneur, me understand not well."
Sense and metre seem to demand the negative.
"And I of thine most truly falsely must needs."
"Notwithstanding the poor and untempering effect of my visage."
I think we should read untempting, with Warburton.
"His daughter first, and in the sequel all."
"And thereupon give unto me your daughter."