[430] Old eds. “you.”
[431] I beseech the reader to make “tears” equivalent to a dissyllable and not pronounce “Heraclītus” as “Heraclĭtus.”
[432] Formerly it was in the sovereign’s power to grant to any petitioner the care of the person and estates of a subject who had been legally proved to be an idiot.
[433] Marston has made a slip here: he has confused the hyena with the panther. “The panther or pardal,” says Topsel, “smelleth most sweetly, which savour he hath received from a divine gift, and doth not only feel the benefit of it himself, but also bewray it unto other beasts; for when he feeleth himself to be hungry and stand in need of meat, then doth he get up into some rough tree, and by his savour or sweet smell, draweth unto him an innumerable company of wild goats, harts, roes, and hinds, and such other beasts, and so upon a sudden leapeth down upon them when he espieth his convenient time. And Solinus saith that the sweetness of his savour worketh the same effect upon them in the open fields, for they are so mightily delighted with his spotted skin and fragrant smell that they always come running unto him from all parts, striving who shall come nearest to him to be satisfied with the sight; but when once they look upon his fierce and grim face they all are terrified and turn away” (History of Four-footed Beasts, ed. 1658, p. 451).
[434] The name of a piece of ordnance.
[435] An exclamation of impatience.
[436] Tadpole.—“Cavesot. A pole-head or bull-head; the little black vermine whereof toads and frogs do come.”—Cotgrave.
[437] Dilke reads “cheval,” and Mr. J. R. Lowell (in My Study Windows) approves of the emendation. I suspect that “Chirall” is a corruption of the name of some horse famous in one of the old romances.—Curtal (= docked horse) would be preferable to cheval.
[438] We have had in Parasitaster (p. 212) a travesty of this line of Richard III. So in the Scourge of Villainy:—
“A man! a man! a kingdom for a man!”
Again in Eastward Ho:—
“A boat! a boat! a full hundred marks for a boat!”
[439] A bacchanalian exclamation of uncertain origin.