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August 6, 1607, a Comedy called What you Will (which is the fecond title of this play), was entered at Stationers Hall by Tho. Thorpe. I believe, however, it was Marston's play with that name. Ben Jonfon, who takes every opportunity to find fault with Shakspeare, seems to ridicule the conduct of Twelfth Night in his Every man out of his Humour, at the end of Act III. fc. vi. where he makes Mitis fay, "That the argument of his comedy might have been of fome other nature, as of a duke to be in love with a countess, and that countefs to be in love with the duke's fon, and the fon in love with the lady's waiting maid: fome fuch crfs wooing, with a clown to their ferving man, better than be thus near and familiarly allied to the time." STEEVENS.

I fuppofe this comedy to have been written in 1614. If however the foregoing paffage was levelled at Twelfth Night, my fpeculation falls to the ground. See An Attempt to afcertain the order of Shakspeare's plays.

MALONE

PERSONS

PERSONS REPRESENTED.

Orfino, duke of Illyria.

Sebaftian, a young gentleman, brother to Viola.
Antonio, a fea-captain, friend to Sebastian.
A fea-captain, friend to Viola.

Valentine,

Curio,

} Gentlemen attending on the duke.

Sir Toby Belch, uncle to Olivia.

Sir Andrew Ague-cheek.

Malvolio, fterward to Olivia.

Fabian,

Clown,

} Servants to Olivia,

Olivia, a rich countefs.

Viola, in love with the duke.

Maria, Olivia's woman.

Lords, Priefts, Sailors, Officers, Muficians, and other Attendants.

SCENE, a city in Illyria; and the fea-coaft near it.

OR,

WHAT YOU WILL.

ACT I. SCENE I.

An apartment in the Duke's palace.

Enter DUKE, CURIO, Lords; Muficians attending.

Duke. If mufick be the food of love, play on,
Give me excess of it; that, furfeiting,
The appetite may ficken, and fo die.
That ftrain again;-it had a dying fall:
O, it came o'er my ear like the fweet fouth,2
That breathes upon a bank of violets,
Stealing and giving odour.-Enough; no more;
'Tis not fo fweet now, as it was before.
O fpirit of love, how quick and fresh art thou!
That, notwithstanding thy capacity
Receiveth as the fea, nought enters there,
Of what validity and pitch foever,3
But falls into abatement and low price,
Even in a minute! fo full of shapes is fancy,
That it alone is high-fantastical.4

Cur. Will you go hunt, my lord?

Duke.

Cur.

What, Curio?

Duke. Why, fo I do, the nobleft that I have:

O, when mine eyes did see Olivia first,

The hart.

Methought, 2 -the fweet fouth,] The old copy reads- -fweet found, which Mr. Rowe changed into wind, and Mr. Pope into fouth. STEEVENS. I fee no reason for disturbing the text of the old copy, which reads➡ Sound. The wind, from whatever quarter, would produce a found in breathing on the violets, or elfe the fimile is falfe. Befides, found is a better relative to the antecedent, ftrain. DoucE.

3 Validity is here ufed for value. MALONE.

+ High-fantastical, means fantaftical to the height. STEEVENS.

Methought, fhe purg'd the air of peftilence;
That inftant was I turn'd into a hart;

And my defires, like fell and cruel hounds,

E'er fince purfue me.5-How now? what news from her?
Enter VALENTINE.

-Val. So please my lord, I might not be admitted,
But from her hand-maid do return this answer:
The element itself, till feven years heat,"
Shall not behold her face át ample view;
But, like a cloiftrefs, fhe will veiled walk,
And water once a day her chamber round
With eye-offending brine: all this, to feafon
A brother's dead love, which fhe would keep fresh,
And lafting, in her fad remembrance.

Duke. O, fhe, that hath a heart of that fine frame,
To pay this debt of love but to a brother,
How will the love, when the rich golden fhaft,
Hath kill'd the flock of all affections 7 elfe
That live in her! when liver, brain, and heart,
These fovereign thrones, are all fupply'd, and fill'd,
(Her fweet perfections,)9 with one felf king!-2

Away

5 This image evidently alludes to the ftory of Acteon, by which Shakspeare feems to think men cautioned againft too great familiarity with forbidden beauty. Acteon, who faw Diana naked, and was torn to pieces by his hounds, reprefents a man, who indulging his eyes, or his imagination, with the view of a woman that he cannot gain, has his heart torn with inceffant longing An interpretation far more elegant and natural than that of Sir Francis Bacon, who, in his Wisdom of the Ancients, fuppofes this story to warn us against enquiring into the fecrets of princes by thewing, that those who know that which for reasons of state is to be concealed, will be detected and destroyed by their own fervants.

JOHNSON. 6 Heat for heated. The air, till it fhall have been warmed by feven revolutions of the fun, fhall not, &c. MALONE.

7/

-the flock of all affections

--

-] So, in Sidney's Arcadia : ", the flock of unspeakable virtues." STEEVENS.

-bas

8 We should read-three fovereign thrones. This is exactly in the manner of Shakspeare. So, afterwards, in this play, Thy tongue, thy face, thy limbs, actions, and spirit, do give thee fivefold blazon. WARBURTON. 9 Liver, brain, and beart, are admitted in poetry as the refidence of passions, judgment, and fentiments. These are what Shakspeare calls, ber •fweek

may not heat be used for course o in racing language? - Races were very Shak:stime. WT.

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Away before me to sweet beds of flowers;
Love-thoughts lie rich, when canopy'd with bowers.

SCENE II.
The Sea-coaft.

Enter VIOLA, Captain, and Sailors.

Vio. What country, friends, is this?
Cap.

Vio. And what fhould I do in Illyria? My brother he is in Elyfium.3

Perchance, he is not drown'd :

[Exeunt.

Illyria, lady.

-What think you, failors?
Cap. It is perchance, that you yourself were fav'd.
Vio. O my poor brother! and fo, perchance, may he be.
Cap. True, madam: and, to comfort you with chance,
Affure yourself, after our fhip did split,

When you, and that poor number fav'd with you,4
Hung on our driving boat, I faw your brother,
Moft provident in peril, bind himself

(Courage and hope both teaching him the practice)
To a ftrong maft, that liv'd upon the fea;
Where, like Arion on the dolphin's back,

I faw him hold acquaintance with the waves,
So long as I could fee.

Vio.
For faying fo, there's gold:
Mine own escape unfoldeth to my hope,

Whereto thy fpeech ferves for authority,

The like of him. Know'ft thou this country ?

Cap. Ay, madam, well; for I was bred and born,

Not three hours travel from this very place.

Vin. Who governs here?

Cap. A noble duke in nature, as in name."

Vio.

fweet perfections, though he has not very clearly expressed what he might
defign to have faid. STEEVENS.

2 S.lf-king means felf-fame king; one and the fame king. MALONE,
3 There is feemingly a play upon the words-Illyria and Elyfium.

DOUCE.

4 We should rather read-this poor number. The old copy has thefe, The failors who were faved, enter with the captain.➡MALONE.

51 know not whether the nobility of the name is comprised in duke, or i Orfino, which is, I think, the name of a great Italian family. JOHN SON,

& As it appears the suilors stood not within hearing (for Viola intuste a went to the caption) menott the Captain, fourting to them as at some dis

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with twist we that on these

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