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No use of metal, corn, or wine, or oil:
No occupation; all men idle, all;
And women too: but innocent and
No sovereignty :-

SEB. Yet he would be king on't.

pure:

ANT. The latter end of his commonwealth forgets the beginning2.

GON. All things in common, nature should pro

duce

3

Without sweat or endeavour: treason, felony,
Sword, pike, knife, gun, or need of any engine
Would I not have; but nature should bring forth,
Of its own kind, all foizon, all abundance,
To feed my innocent people.

SEB. No marrying 'mong his subjects?

it would have exactly the same meaning as "bound of land." There is therefore no need of the dissyllabical assistance recommended in the preceeding note. STEEVENS.

2 The latter end of his commonwealth forgets the beginning.] All this dialogue is a fine satire on the Utopian treatises of government, and the impracticable inconsistent schemes therein recommended. WARBURTON.

3

66

any ENGINE,-] An engine is the rack. So, in K. Lear:
like an engine, wrench'd my frame of nature
"From the fix'd place."

It may, however, be used here in its common signification of instrument of war, or military machine.

STEEVENS.

4-all FOIZON,] Foison, or foizon, signifies plenty, ubertas; not moisture, or juice of grass, as Mr. Pope says. EDWARDS.

So, in Warner's Albion's England, 1602, b. xiii. ch. 78:

"Union, in breese, is foysonous, and discorde works decay." Mr. Pope, however, is not entirely mistaken, as foison, or fizon, sometimes bears the meaning which he has affixed to it. See Ray's Collection of South and East country words. STEEVENS.

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nature should bring forth,

"Of its own kind, all foizon, all abundance,

"To feed my innocent people." "And if notwithstanding, in divers fruits of those countries that were never tilled, we shall find that in respect of our's they are most excellent, and as delicate unto our taste, there is no reason Art should gain the point of our great and puissant mother, Nature." Montaigne's Essaies, ubi supra. MALONE.

ANT. None, man; all idle; whores, and knaves. GON. I would with such perfection govern, sir, To excel the golden age 5.

SEB.

ANT. Long live Gonzalo !

GON.

'Save his majesty!

And, do you mark me, sir ?—

ALON. Pr'ythee, no more: thou dost talk nothing

to me.

GON. I do well believe your highness; and did it to minister occasion to these gentlemen, who are of such sensible and nimble lungs, that they always use to laugh at nothing.

ANT. 'Twas you we laugh'd at.

GON. Who, in this kind of merry fooling, am nothing to you: so you may continue, and laugh at nothing still.

ANT. What a blow was there given?

SEB. An it had not fallen flat-long.

GON. You are gentlemen of brave mettle; you would lift the moon out of her sphere, if she would continue in it five weeks without changing.

Enter ARIEL invisible, playing solemn musick". SEB. We would so, and then go a bat-fowling. ANT. Nay, good my lord, be not angry.

5 I would with such perfection govern, sir,

TO EXCEL THE GOLDEN AGE.] So Montaigne, ubi supra: "Me seemeth that what in those [newly discovered] nations we see by experience, doth not only EXCEED all the pictures wherewith licentious poesie hath proudly imbellished the GOLDEN AGE, and all her quaint inventions to fain a happy condition of man, but also the conception and desire of philosophy." MALONE.

6 of brave METTLE;] The old copy has-metal. The two words are frequently confounded in the first folio. The epithet, brave, shows clearly, that the word now placed in the text was intended by our author. MALONE.

7 Enter ARIEL, &c. playing solemn music.] This stage-direction does not mean to tell us that Ariel himself was the fidicen ; but that solemn music attended his appearance, was an accompaniment to his entry. STEEVENs.

VOL. XV.

G

GON. No, I warrant you; I will not adventure my discretion so weakly. Will you laugh me asleep, for I am very heavy ?

ANT. Go sleep, and hear us.

[All sleep but ALON. SEB. and ANT. ALON. What, all so soon asleep! I wish mine

eyes

Would, with themselves, shut up my thoughts: I

find,

They are inclin❜d to do so.

SEB.

Please you, sir,

Do not omit the heavy offer of it:

It seldom visits sorrow; when it doth,

It is a comforter.

ANT.

We two, my lord,

Will guard your person, while you take your rest,

And watch your safety.

ALON.

Thank you: Wond'rous heavy.[ALONSO sleeps. Exit ARIEL.

SEB. What a strange drowsiness possesses

them!

ANT. It is the quality o' the climate.

Why

SEB.
Doth it not then our eye-lids sink? I find not

Myself dispos'd to sleep.

ANT.

Nor I; my spirits are nimble.

What

They fell together all, as by consent;

They dropp'd, as by a thunder-stroke.

might,

Worthy Sebastian ?-O, what might ?-No more:And yet, methinks, I see it in thy face,

What thou should'st be: the occasion speaks thee; and

My strong imagination sees a crown

Dropping upon thy head.

SEB.

What, art thou waking?

ANT. Do you not hear me speak?

SEB.

I do; and, surely,

It is a sleepy language; and thou speak'st
Out of thy sleep: What is it thou didst say?
This is a strange repose, to be asleep

With eyes wide open; standing, speaking, mov

ing,

And yet so fast asleep.

ANT.

Noble Sebastian,

Thou let'st thy fortune sleep-die rather; wink'st Whiles thou art waking.

SEB.

Thou dost snore distinctly;

There's meaning in thy snores.

ANT. I am more serious than my custom: you Must be so too, if heed me; which to do,

Trebles thee o'er 8.

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If you but knew, how you the purpose cherish,
Whiles thus you mock it! how, in stripping it,

8 I am more serious than my custom: you

Must be so too, if heed me: which to do,

Trebles thee o'ER.] This passage is represented to me as an obscure one. The meaning of it seems to be-'You must put on more than your usual seriousness, if you are disposed to pay a proper attention to my proposal; which attention if you bestow, it will in the end make you thrice what you are.' Sebastian is already brother to the throne; but, being made a king by Antonio's contrivance, would be (according to our author's idea of greatness) thrice the man he was before. In this sense he would be trebled o'er. So, in Pericles, 1609 :

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66

thirds his own worth." STEEVENS.

Again, in the Merchant of Venice :

66

Yet, for you,

"I would be trebled twenty times myself." MALOne.

You more invest it! Ebbing men, indeed,
Most often do so near the bottom run,

By their own fear, or sloth.

SEB.

Pr'ythee, say on:

The setting of thine eye, and cheek, proclaim
A matter from thee; and a birth, indeed,
Which throes thee much to yield.

ANT.

Thus, sir:

Although this lord of weak remembrance', this (Who shall be of as little memory,

When he is earth'd,) hath here almost persuaded (For he's a spirit of persuasion, only Professes to persuade) the king, his son's alive; 'Tis as impossible that he's undrown'd,

As he that sleeps here, swims 2. .

9 If you but knew, how you the purpose cherish, Whiles thus you mock it! how, in stripping it,

It

You more invest it!] A judicious critic in The Edinburgh Magazine for Nov. 1786, offers the following illustration of this obscure passage. "Sebastian introduces the simile of water. is taken up by Antonio, who says he will teach his stagnant water to flow. It has already learned to ebb,' says Sebastian. To which Antonio replies, O if you but knew how much even that metaphor, which you use in jest, encourages to the design which I hint at; how in stripping the words of their common meaning, and using them figuratively, you adapt them to your own situation!"" STEEVENS.

I

this lord of weak remembrance,] This lord, who, being now in his dotage, has outlived his faculty of remembering; and who, once laid in the ground, shall be as little remembered himself, as he can now remember other things. JOHNSON.

2

hath here almost persuaded

(For he's a spirit of persuasion, only

PROFESSES TO PERSUADE) the king, his son's alive;

'Tis as impossible that he's undrown'd,

As he that sleeps here, swims.] Of this entangled sentence I can draw no sense from the present reading, and therefore imagine that the author gave it thus :

"For he, a spirit of persuasion, only

"Professes to persuade the king, his son's alive;"

Of which the meaning may be either, that "he alone, who is a spirit of persuasion, professes to persuade the king;" or that, "He only professes to persuade," that is, without being so persuaded himself, he makes a show of persuading the king." JOHNSON.

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