The effect, and it! Come to my woman's breasts, And stake my milk for gall, you murth ring minifters, Where-ever in your fightless fubftances 6 • You wait on nature's mifchief!-Come, thick night, Enter cannot be doubted that Shakespeare wrote differently, perhaps thus, That no compunctious visitings of nature Shake my fell purpose, nor keep pace between Th' effect and it. To keep pace between may fignify to pass between, to intervene. Pace is on many occafions a favourite of Shakespeare's. This phrafe is indeed not ufual in this fenfe, but was it not its novelty that gave occafion to the prefent corruption? JOHNSON. The fenfe is, that no compunctious vifitings of nature may prevail upon her, to give place in her mind to peaceful thoughts, or to reft one moment in quiet, from the hour of her purpose to its full completion in the effect. REVISAL. This writer thought himself perhaps very fagacious that he found a meaning which nobody miffed, the difficulty still remains how fuch a meaning is made by the words. JOHNSON. and it] The folio reads, and hit. STEEVENS. Take away my milk, and put gall into the place. JOHNSON. Nature's mischief is mifchief done to nature, violation of nature's order committed by wickedness. JOHNSON. On this paffage there is a long criticism in the Rambler. JOHNS. The thought is taken from the old military laws which inflicted capital punishment upon " "whofoever shall strike stroke at his "adverfary, either in heat or otherwife, if a third do cry bold, "to the intent to part them; except that they did fight a com E c 4 "bat Enter Macbeth. Great Glamis! worthy Cawdor! Greater than both, by the all-bail hereafter! Mach. My dearest love, Duncan comes here to-night. Lady. And when goes hence? Mach. To-morrow, as he purposes. Lady. Oh, never bat in a place inclosed: and then no man shall be so hardy as to bid bold, but the general." P. 264 of Mr. Bellay's Inftruc ions for the Wars, tranflated in 1589. TOLLET. 9 Great Glamis! worthy Cawdor!] Shakespeare has fupported the character of lady Macbeth by repeated efforts, and never omits any opportunity of adding a trait of ferocity, or a mark of the want of human feelings, to this monfter of his own creation. The fofter paffions are more obliterated in her than in her husband, in proportion as her ambition is greater. She meets him here on his return from an expedition of danger with fuch a falutation as would have become one of his friends or vaffals; a falutation apparently fitted rather to raise his thoughts to a level with her own purposes, than to testify her joy at his return, or manifeft an attachment to his perfon: nor does any fentiment expreffive of love or foftnefs fall from her throughout the play. While Macbeth himself in the midst of the horrors of his guilt ftill retains a character lefs fiend-like than that of his queen, talks to her with a degree of tenderness, and pours his complaints and fears into her bofom, accompanied with terms of endearment. STEEVENS. Ignorant, for bafe, poor, ignoble. WARBURTON. Ignorant has here the fignification of unknowing; that is, I feel by anticipation thofe future hours, of which, according to the process of nature, the prefent time would be ignorant. 2 JOHNSON. -prefent time,--] The word time is wanting in the old copy. STEEVENS, Shall Shall fun that morrow fee! Your face, my Thane, is as a book, where men But be the ferpent under it. Must be provided for: and look like the innocent He, that's coming you fhall put This night's great business into my dispatch; Lady. Only look up clear; To alter favour, ever, is to fear; Leave all the reft to me. SCENE VI. [Exeunt. Hautboys and Torches. Enter King, Malcolm, Donalbain, Banquo, Lenox, Macduff, Roffe, Angus, and Attendants. King. This caftle hath a pleasant feat; the air Nimbly and fweetly recommends itself ? Unto our gentle fenfes. 3 Unto our GENTLE SENSES.] Ban How odd a character is this of the air that it could recommend itSelf to all the fenfes, not excepting the fight and hearing? Without doubt, we should read, Unto our GENERAL SENSE, meaning the touch or feeling: which not being confined to one part, like the reft of the fenfes, but extended over the whole body, the poet, by a fine periphrafis, calls the general fenfe. Therefore by the air's recommending itself nimbly and feetly mult be understood that it was clear and foft, which properties recreated the fibres, and affifted their vibration. And furely it was a good circumftance in the air of Scotland that it was foft and warm ; and this circumftance he would recommend, as appears from the following words, This Ban. This gueft of fummer, The temple-haunting martlet, does approve Buttrefs, nor coigne of 'vantages, but this bird Enter Lady Macbeth. King. See, fee! our honour'd hoftefs! The love that follows us, fometime is our trouble, Which still we thank as love. Herein I teach you, "How you should bid god-yield us for your pains, And thank us for your trouble. Lady. All our fervice, In every point twice done, and then done double, This gueft of fummer The temple-baunting martlet General has been corrupted to gentle once again in this very play. See note, act iii. fcene 5. WARBURTON Senfes are nothing more than each man's fenfe. Gentle fenfes is very elegant, as it means placid, calm, compofed, and intimates the peaceable delight of a fine day. JOHNSON. martlet,-] This bird is in the old edition called barlet. JOHNSON 3-coigne of 'vantage,-] Convenient corner. JOHNSON. To bid any one God-yeld him, i. e. God-yield him, was the fame as God reward him. WARBURTON. I believe yield, or, as it is in the folio of 1623, eyld, is a cor rupted contraction of shield. The with implores not reward but protection. JOHNSON. I rather believe it to be a corruption of God-yield, i. e. reward. In Ant. and Cleop. we meet with it at length: "And the Gods yield you for't." STEEVENS. A gainst Against those honours deep and broad, wherewith Your majefty loads our houfe. For thofe of old, And the late dignities heap'd up to them, We reft your hermits. King. Where's the Thane of Cawdor? We cours'd him at the heels, and had a purpose And his great love, fharp as his fpur, hath holp him We are your guest to-night. 9 Lady. Your fervants ever Have theirs, themselves, and what is theirs, in compt, King. Give me your hand : Conduct me to mine hoft; we love him highly, We reft your hermits.] Hermits, for beadsmen. WARBURTON. [Exeunt. That is, we as hermits fhall always pray for you. STEEVENS. 9 Your fervants ever] This speech is a little obfcure; I would therefore point the firft line of it thus, Have theirs, themselves, and what in theirs, is compt, The meaning feems to be, that they hold their families, their perfons, and their poffeffions in readiness to be accountable to him for them, as they only look on themfelves as his ftewards, or are indebted to him for the free enjoyment of them all. STEEVENS. SCENE |