[TIMON OF ATHENS.]
ACT I.
Scene 1. Page 481.
Enter Apemantus.
"See this character of a cynic finely drawn by Lucian in his Auction of the philosophers; and how well Shakspeare has copied it," says Dr. Warburton; who took it for granted that our author could read Lucian out of English. Until this can be proved, or that any English translation of the above piece existed in Shakspeare's time, we are at liberty to doubt how far Apemantus is a copy from Lucian, or rather to believe that he is a highly finished portrait after a very slight sketch by Plutarch.
ACT IV.
Scene 3. Page 587.
Tim. She, [her] whom the spital-house and ulcerous sores
Would cast the gorge at, this embalms and spices
To the April day again.
It had been better to have withdrawn Dr. Johnson's note, for he has entirely misconceived the meaning of this part of Timon's speech. He has mistaken the person who was to be embalmed to the April day again, and supposed, without reason, that the wedding day is here called April or fools day. Mr. Tollett has already corrected the first of these errors, and properly explained the April day to mean the freshness of youth. See a description of April from an old calendar in p. 45. The word day in this instance is equivalent with time.
Scene 3. Page 593.