From whence doth spring the true Promethean fire
Why, universal plodding prisons up
The nimble spirits in the arteries ;
As motion and long-during action tires
The finewy vigour of the traveller.
Now, for not looking on a woman's face,
You have in that forfworn the use of eyes ;
And study too, the causer of your vow.
For where is any author in the world,
Teaches such beauty as a woman's eye?
Learning is but an adjunct to ourself,
And where we are, our learning likewise is.
Then, when ourselves we see in Ladies eyes,
Do we not likewise see our learning there?
O, we have made a vow to study, Lords;
And in that vow we have forsworn our books:
For when would you, my Liege, or you, or you,
In leaden contemplation have found out
Such fiery numbers, as the prompting eyes
Of beauty's tutors have enrich'd you with ?
Other flow arts entirely keep the brain;
And therefore finding barren practisers,
Scarce thew a harvest of their heavy toil.
But love, first learned in a Lady's eyes,
Lives not alone immured in the brain :
But with the motion of all elements,
Courses are swift as thought in every power ;
And gives to every power a double power,
Above their functions and their offices.
It adds a precious seeing to the eye:
A lover's eyes will gaze an eagle blind!
A lover's ear will hear the lowest found,
When the suspicious head of thrift is stopt. (32)

Love's (32) A lover's car will bear the lowest found,

Wben the suspicious bead of theft is popid] Lhave ventur'd to substitute a word here, againft the authority of all the printed copies. There is no contrast of terms, betwixt a lover and å tbief: but betwixt a lover and a man of thrift there is a remark. able antiz befis. Nor is it true in fact, I believe that a thief, harden'd to the profession, is always suspicious of being apprehended; but he

may

Love's feeling is more foft and sensible,
Than are the tender horns of cockled snails.
Love's tongue proves dainty Bacchus gross in taste;
For savour, is not love a Hercules ??
Still climbing trees in the Hesperides. (33)
Subtle as Sphinx; as sweet and musical
As bright Apollo's lute, strong with his hair :
And when love speaks the voice of all the gods, (34)

Mark,

may Neep as found as an honefter man. But, according to the ideas we have of a miler, a man who makes lucre and pelf his sole object and pursuit, his sleeps are broken and disturb’d with perpetual apprehenfions of being robb’d of his darling treasure : confequently his ear is upon the attentive bent, even when he sleeps best. (33) For valour is not love e Hercules,

Still climbing trees in the Hefperides ?] I have here again ventur’d to transgress againk the printed Books. The poet is here observing how all the senses are refind by love. But what has the poor sense of smelling done, not to keep its place among its brethren? then Hercules's valour was not in climbing ibe trees, but in attacking the dragon gardant. I rather think, the poet meant, that Hercules was allured by the odour and fragrancy of the golden apples. So Virgil speaks of a particular fruit, upon which the commentators are not agreed.

Et, fi non alium late jactaret odorem,
Laurus erat :

Georg. II. Besides, setting aside the allusion of Hercuks to the fruit, lovers think so grateful an odour transpires from their mistresses, that from every pore (as Nat Lee has expressid it) a perfume falls. To these fragrane cies the Clafics frequently allude.

quid babes illius, illius,
Que spirabat Amores,
Que me furpuerat mibi.

Hor. lib. iv. Od. 13
Cum tu, Lydia, Telephi
Cervicem rosean, lattea Telephi
Laudus bracbia.

Idem. lib, i. Od. 13.
For Bodius Ascentius, explaining Cervicem rofeom, says,. io. e. fragran,
tem, aut formofam.
So likewise Virgil, describing the fragrancy of Venus,

avereens rosea Cervice refulfit, Ambrofiaqua Com.z divinum Vertice Odorem Spiravêre.

Æneid. I. (34. And when love speaks, tbe voice of all the gods,

Make baaven drowy with ebe barmury.] As this is writ and pointed in all the copies, there is neither sense, nos concord; as will be obvious to every undertanding reader. The fine

and

Mark, heaven drowsy with the harmony !
· Never durft poet touch a pen to write,
Until his ink were temper'd with love's sighs;
O, then his lines would ravih savage ears,
And plant in tyrants mild humility.-
From womens eyes this doctrine I derive:
They sparkle still the right Promethean fire,
They are the books, the arts, the academies,
That shew, contain, and nourish all the world;
Else none at all in ought proves excellent.
Then fools you were, these women to forswear :
Or, keeping what is fworn, you will prove fools.
For wisdom's fake (a word, that all men love)
Or for love's sake, (a word that loves all men ;)
Or for mens fake, (the author of these women;).
Or woman's fake, (by whom we men are men ;)
Let us once lose our oaths, to find ourselves;
Or else we lose ourselves, to keep our oaths.
It is religion to be thus forsworn,
For charity itself fulfils the law;
And who can sever love from charity ?

King. Saint Cupid then! and, foldiers, to the field !

Biron. Advance your standards, and upon them, Lords ; Pell mell, down with them ; but be firit advis'd, In conflict that you get the fun of them.

Long. Now to plain-dealing, lay these glozes by; Shall we resolve to woo these girls of France ?

and easy emendation, which I have inserted in the text, I owe to my ingenious friend Mr. Warburton. His comment on heaven being drowsy with the barmony is no leis ingenious; and therefore, I'll subjoin it in his own words. “ Mufick, we must observe, in our av& thor's time had a very different use to what it has now. At present, " it is only employ'd to raise and inflame the paffions; then, to calm " and alloy all kind of purturbations. And, agreeeble to this obferva

• tion, throughout all Sbakespeare's plays, where mufick is either • actually used, or its power describ’d, 'tis always said to be for these " ends. Particularly, it was most frequently us’d at the Coucbee of

I eaven being made drowsy with the barmony, therefore “ I take to mean, footbing their cares, and lulling them to reft. For " the Cloffical deities, like earthly grandees, are fubject to che molt « violent perturbations of buman passions".

o the great,

King. And win them too, therefore let us devise Some entertainment for them in their tents.

Biron. First, from the park let us conduct them thither; Then homeward every man attach the hand Of his fair mistress; in the afternoon We will with some strange paftime solace them, Such as the shortness of the time can shape : For revels, dances, masks, and merry hours, Forerun fair love, strewing her way with Aowers.

King. Away, away! no time shall be omitted, That will be time, and may by us be fitted. Biron. Allons ! allons ! fown cockle reap'd no corn;(35)

And justice always whirls in equal measure ; Light wenches may prove plagues to men forsworn ;

If so, our copper buys no better treasure. [Exeunt.

ACT. IV..
SC EN E, the Street.

Enter Holofernes, Nathaniel and Dull.

HOLOFERN ES.
Atis, quod fufficit.

Nath. I praise God for you, Sir, your reasons at dinner have been sharp and sententious ; pleasant without fcurrility, witty without affectation, audacious without impudency, learned without opinion, and strange without heresy: I did converse this quondam-day with a companion of the King's, who is entituled, nominated, or called, Don Adriano de Armado.

(35) Alone, alone, fow'd cockrel.] The editors, sure, could have no idea of this passage. Biron begins with a repetition in French of what the King had faid in English ; away, away! and then proceeds with a proverbial expression, inciting them to what he had before advis’d, from this inference; if we only fow cockle, we mall nezer reap corn, i. e. if we don't take the proper measures for wipning these Ladies, we shall never atchieve them.

Mr. Warburton

Hola

Hol. Novi beminem, tanquàm te. His humour is lofty, his discourse peremptory, his tongue filed, his eye ambitious, his gate majestical, and his general behaviour vain, ridiculous, and thrasonical. He is too piqued, too spruce, too affected, too odd, as it were; too peregrinate, as I may call it. Nath. A most fingular and choice epithet.

[draws out his table-book. Hol. He draweth out the thread of his verbosity finer than the staple of his argument. I abhor such phanatical phantasms, Tuch iníociable and point-devise companions; luch rackers of orthography, as do speak dout fine, when he should say doubt; det, when he should pronouce debt; d, e, b, t; not d, e, t: he clepeth a calf, cauf: half, hauf; neighbour vocatur nebour; neigh ab. breviated ne: this is abominable, which we would call abhomidable : (36) it infinuateth me of infamy Ne intelligis Domine, to make frantick, lunatick?

Nath. Laus deo, bone, intelligo.

Hol. Bona bone, for benè ; Priscian a little scratch'd; 'twill serve.

(36), k infinuatetb me of Infamy: Nè intelligis, Domine, to make frantick, lunatick?

Natb. Laus Deo, bene intelligo.

Hol. Bome boon for boon prescian; a little scratch, 'twill serve.) This play is certainly none of the beft in itself, but the editors have been fo very happy in making it worse by their indolence, that they have left me Augeas's stable to cleanse: and a man had need have the Arength of a Hercules to heave out all their rubbish. But to bufiness; why Thould infamy be explain'd by making, frantick, lunatick? It is plain and obvious that the poet intended, the pedant should coin an uncouth affected word here, infanie, from infania of the Latines. Then what a piece of unintelligible jargon have these learned criticks given us for Latine ? I think, I may venture to affirm, I have restor'd the passage to its true purity.

Nath. Laus Deo, bone, intelligo. The Curate, addressing with complaisance his brother pedant, says, bone, to him, as we frequently in Terence find bone vir; but the pedans thinking, he had miftaken the adverb, thus descants on it.

Bonec bone for bene. Priscian a little scratcb'd: 'twi 4 serve. alluding to the common phrase, Diminuis Prisciani capul, apply'd to. such as speak false Latin,

Enter