And thither bear your treafure and your goods. Go, I'll conduct you to the fanctuary. [Exeunt SCENE, in London. The Trumpets found. Enter Prince of Wales, the Dukes of Gloucester and Buckingham, Archbishop, with others. WE BUCKINGHAM. Elcome, fweet Prince, to London, to your chamber. The weary way hath made you melancholy. your years Thofe uncles, which you want, were dangerous: Mayor. GodblefsyourGracewith health and happydays! Fie, what a flug is Haftings? that he comes not Enter Lord Haftings. Buck. And in good time here comes the fweating Lord. Prince. Welcome, my Lord; what, will our mother come? Haft. On what occafion, God he knows, not I, The Queen your mother, and your brother York, Have taken fan&tuary; the tender Prince Would fain have come with me to meet your Grace, But by his mother was perforce with-held. Buck. Fie, what an indirect and peevish courfe If the deny, Lord Haftings, you go with him, Arch. My Lord of Buckingham, if my weak oratory Buck. You are too fenfelefs-obftinate my Lord; Weigh it but with the groffnefs of this age, To thofe, whofe dealings have deferv'd the place; But fanctuary-children ne'er till now. Arch. My Lord, you fhall o'er-rule my mind for once. Come on, Lord Haftings, will you go with me Haft. I go, my Lord. [Exeunt Archbishop and Haftings.. Prince. Prince. Good Lords, make all the fpeedy hafte you may. Say, uncle Gloster, if our brother come, Where fall we fojourn till our coronation? Glo. Where it feems beft unto your royal felf: . If I Your Highness fhall repofe you at the Tower: Prince. I do not like the Tower of any place; Even to the general all-ending day. Glo. So wife, fo young, they fay, do ne'er live long. Glo. I fay, without characters fame lives long. I moralize two meanings in one word. (12)} Afide. Prince. (12) Thus like the formal vice, iniquity, I moralize two meanings in one word.] All the editions agree in this reading, without the leaft variation; and therefore I have not ventured to disturb the text. But as the paffage has been moft ingenioufly attempted, it is incumbent on me to give the conjecture a place; after which, I will fee how far the prefent reading may be defended and accounted for; and then fubmit both to publick judgment. To begin with the anonymous corrector; "Richard, having "glofs'd over a villainous meaning with an equivocal expreffion, makes his reflection upon it. But, I believe, neither the attribute "given to iniquity of moralizing, nor the epithet of a formal vicę, are very intelligible; fure, they make the fenfe of the two lines altogether incomprehenfible. Thofe, who attend to the speaker's character, and are acquainted with ancient literature, will agree with me that the lines should be read thus: Thus, like the formal wife antiquity, I moralize two meanings in one word. «Alluding to the mythologic learning of the ancients, which explain'd "the Prince. That Julius Cæfar was a famous man; "the fables of their gods by moral verities; a fentiment wonderfully well adapted to the character of Richard, who must be fuppos'd "here to speak ironically and to this effect. You men of morals, who fo much extol your formal wife antiquity, in what am I inferior to it, " which was but an equivocator as I am, and could moralize two "meanings in one word ?" come now to the explanation of the text, as it is exhibited in the printed copies. By vice, perhaps the author may mean not a quality but a perfon. There was hardly an old play, till the period of the reformation, which had not in it a devil, and a drole character, a jefter; (who was to play upon, and work, the devil;) and this buffoon went by the name of vice. A vice in a play, badin, mime; to play the vice, badiner; mime, a vice, fool, jefter, &c. in a play; fays Cotgrave. Mimo, (mimus) a jefter, a vice; fays Minshew in his Spanish dictionary. If it be worth the while to spend a word or two upon derivation, we are told, this vice comes from the Saxon word leck, which comes from the Greek sinai, vanus, fatuus. I confefs, I think, we may go a nearer way to work. This vice, in my mind, comes from the Greek original: for, adding the Æolic digamma to einai, (fcil. Feinal) and then throwing out the termination, vice is very nearly produced. But to pass over from etimology. This buffoon was at first accoutred with a long jerkin, a cap with a pair of afs's ears, and a wooden dagger, with which, (like another harlequin) he was to make sport in belabouring the devil. This was the conftant entertainment in the times of popery, whilft fpirits, and witchcraft, and exorcifing held their own. When the reformation took place, the stage shook off fome groffities, and encreas'd in refinements. The master-devil then was foon difmiffed from the fcene; and this buffoon was chang'd into a subordinate fiend, whofe bufinefs was to range on earth, and feduce poor mortals into that perfonated vicious quality, which he occafionally fupported; as, iniquity in general, bypocrify, ufury, vanity, prodigality, gluttony, &c. Now as the fiend, (or vice,) who perfonated iniquity (or hypocrify, for inftance,) could never hope to play his game to the purpofe but by hiding his cloven foot, and affuming a femblance quite different from his real character; he muft certainly put on a formal demeanour, moralize, and prevaricate in his words, and pretend a meaning directly oppofite to his genuine and primitive intention. If this does not explain the paffage in queftion, 'tis all that I can at prefent suggest upon it, -Sub judice lis eft: I relinquish it to more able judgments. Buck. Buck. What, my gracious Lord ? Prince. An if I live until I be a man, I'll win our ancient right in France again, Or die a foldier, as I liv'd a King. Glo. Short fummer lightly has a forward fpring. Enter York, Haftings, and Archbishop. Buck. Now in good time here comes the Duke of York. Prince. Richard of York, how fares our noble brother? York. Well, my dread Lord, fo muft I call you now. Prince. Ay, brother, to our grief, as it is yours; Too late he dy'd that might have kept that title, Which by his death hath loft much Majefty. Glo. How fares our coufin, noble Lord of York? York. And therefore is he idle? Glo. Oh, my fair coufin, I muft not fay fo. York. Then he is more beholden to you than I. Glo. He may command me as my Sovereign, But you have pow'r in me, as in a kinfman. York. I pray you, uncle, give me this dagger. Glo. My dagger, little coufin? with all my heart. Prince. A beggar, brother? York. Of my kind uncle, that I know will give; And being a toy, it is no grief to give, Glo. A greater gift than that I'll give my coufin. York. A greater gift? O, that's the fword to it. Glo. Ay, gentle coufin, were it light enough. York. Ó, then I fee, you'll part but with light gifts; In weightier things you'll fay a beggar nay. Glo. It is too weighty for your Grace to wear. York. I weigh it lightly, were it heavier. Glo What, would you have my weapon, little Lord? York. I would, that I might thank you, as you call me. Glo. How? York. Little. Prince. My Lord of York will still be cross in talk: Uncle, |