Def. I cannot fpeak of this. Come now your promise. Oth. What promife, chuck? Def. this very piece was acted in 1613, very strongly incline me to question the propriety of Dr. Warburton's hiftorical explanation. STEEVENS. To almost every fentence of Dr. Warburton's note, an objection may be taken; but I have preferved it as a specimen of this commentator's manner. It is not true that king James created the order of baronets foom after he came to the throne. It was created in the year 1611.-The conceit that by the word bearts the poet meant to allude to the gallantry of the reign of Elizabeth, in which men diftinguished themselves by their feel, and that by bands thofe courtiers were pointed at, who served her inglorious fucceffor only by their gold, is too fanciful to deferve an answer. Thus Dr. Warburton's note stood as it appeared originally in Theobald's edition; but in his own, by way of confirmation of his notion, we are told, that it was not uncommon for the fatirical poets of that time to fatirife the ignominy of James's reign;" and for this affertion we are referred to Fletcher's Fair Maid of the Inn. But, unluckily, it appears from the office-book of Sir Henry Herbert, a Mf. of which an account is given in Vol. I. Part II, that Fletcher's plays were generally performed at court foon after they were firft exhibited at the theatre, and we may be affured that he would not venture to offend his courtly auditors. The Fair Maid of the Inn, indeed, never was performed be fore King James, being the laft play but one that Fletcher wrote, and not produced till the 22d of Jan. 1625-6, after the death both of its authour and king James; but when it was written, he muft, from the circumftance already mentioned, have had the court before his eyes. In various parts of our poet's works he has alluded to the custom of plighting troth by the union of hands. So, in Hamlet: "Since love our bearts, and Hymen did our bands "Unite co-mutual in moft facred bands." Again, in The Tempeft, which was probably written at no great distance of time from the play before us: "Mir. My husband then? "Fer. Ay, with a heart as willing "As bondage e'er of freedom. Here's my band. The hearts of old, fays Othello, dictated the union of bands, which formerly were joined with the the bearts of the parties in them; but in our modern marriages, bands alone are united, without bearts. Such evidently is the plain meaning of the words. I do not, however, undertake to maintain that the poet, when he ufed the word beraldry, had Def. I have fent to bid Caffio come speak with you. Oth. I have a falt and fullen rheum' offends me; Lend me thy handkerchief. Def. Here, my lord. Oth. That which I gave you. Def. I have it not about me. Def. No, indeed, my lord. Oth. That is a fault: That handkerchief Did an Egyptian to my mother give ; She had not the new order of baronets in his thoughts, without intending any fatirical allufion. MALONE. I think, with Dr. Warburton, that the new order of baronets is here again alluded to. See Merry Wives of Windfor, p. 221, and Spelman's Epigram there cited: florentis nomen honoris "Indicat in clypei fronte cruenta manus. "Non quod fævi aliquid, aut ftricto fortiter enfe "Hoftibus occifis gefferit ifte cohors." BLACKSTONE. The reader will not find the epigram alluded to by Sir William Blackstone, in the page to which he has referred; for I have omitted that part of his note, (an omiffion of which I have there given notice,) because it appeared to me extremely improbable that any paffage in that play fhould allude to an event that did not take place till 1611. The omitted words I add here, (diftinguishing them by Italick characters,) as they may appear to add weight to his opinion and that of Dr. Warburton, 66 I fufpect this is an oblique reflection on the prodigality of James the firft in beftowing these bonours, and erecting a new order of knightbood called baronets; which few of the ancient gentry would condescend to accept. See Sir Henry Spelman's epigram on them, GLoss. p. 76, which ends thus: dum cauponare recufant "Ex vera geniti nobilitate viri, "Interea è caulis bic prorepit, ille tabernis, "Et modo fit dominus, qui modo fervus erat. See another ftroke at them in Othello." MALONE. 7-falt and fullen rbeum-] Thus the quarto, 1622. The folio, for fullen, has forry. MALONE. Sullen, that is, a rheum obftinately troublesome. I think this better. 8 - That bandkerchief JOHNSON. Did an Egyptian to my mother give:] In the account of this tremendous handkerchief, are fome particulars, which lead me to think that She was a charmer, and could almost read The thoughts of people: fhe told her, while fhe kept it, "Twould make her amiable, and fubdue my father Entirely to her love; but if the loft it, Or made a gift of it, my father's eye Should hold her loathly, and his fpirits should hunt Def. Is it poflible? Oth. 'Tis true: there's magick in the web of it: A fibyl, that had number'd in the world that here is an allufion to a fact, heightened by poetical imagery. It is the practice in the eastern regions for perfons of both fexes to carry handkerchiefs very curiously wrought. In the Mf. papers of Sir J. Chardin, that great oriental traveller, is a paffage which fully defcribes the custom. "The mode of wrought handkerchiefs (fays this learned inquirer) is general in Arabia, in Syria, in Palestine, and in all the Turkish empire. They are wrought with a needle, and it is the amusement of the fair fex there, as among us the making tapestry and lace. The young women make them for their fathers, their brothers, and by way of preparation before hand for their spouses; beftowing them as favours on their lovers. They have them almoft conftantly in their hands, in those warm countries, to wipe off sweat." But whether this circumstance ever came to Shakspeare's knowledge and gave rife to the incident, I am not able to determine. WHALLEY. Shakspeare found in Cinthio's novel the incident of Desdemona's lofing a handkerchief finely wrought in Morifco work, which had been prefented to her by her husband, or rather of its being ftolen from her by the villain who afterwards by his machinations robbed her of her life. The eastern cuftom of brides prefenting fuch gifts to their husbands, certainly did not give rife to the incident on which this tragedy turns, though Shakspeare fhould feem to have been apprized of it. However, I have retained the preceding note as illuftrative of the paffage before us. MALONE. 9 A fibyl, &c.] This circumftance perhaps is imitated by Ben Jonfon in The Sad Shepherd: "A Gypfan lady, and a right beldame, Wrought it by moon-fhine for me, and ftar-light," &c. STEEVENS. The The fun to make two hundred compaffes, The worms were hallow'd, that did breed the filk; Def. Indeed! is it true? Oth. Moft veritable; therefore look to it well. Def. Why do you speak fo ftartingly and rafh +? Oth. Is't loft is't gone? fpeak, is it out of the way? Def. Heaven bless us! Oth. Say you? Def. It is not loft; But what an if it were? 1 The fun to make two hundred compaffes,] Thus the quarto, 1622. The folio reads-to courfe two hundred compaffes. I have preferred the original reading, because we have in Hamlet, When yon fame ftar, that's eastward from the pole, "Had made his courfe, to illume that part of heaven." number'd MALONE. The fun to courfe, &c.] i. e. number'd the fun's courses: badly expreffed. WARBURTON.. The expreffion is not very infrequent: we fay, I counted the clock to frike four; fo the number'd the fun to courfe, to run two hundred compales, two hundred circuits. JOHNSON. 2 And it was dy'd in mummy,] The balfamick liquor running from mummies was formerly celebrated for its anti-epileptick virtues. We are now wife enough to know, that the qualities afcribed to it are all imaginary; and yet I have been informed that this fanciful medicine still holds a place in the fhops where drugs are fold. So, in The Bird in a Cage, by Shirley, 1633: "make mummy of my flesh, and fell me to the apothecaries." Again, in The Honeft Lawyer, 1616: "That I might tear their flesh in mamocks, raise STEEVENS. Conferv'd of maidens' bearts.] Thus the folio. The quarte 574 Oth. Ha! Def. I fay, it is not loft. Oth. Fetch it, let me fee it. Def. Why, fo I can, fir, but I will not now; This is a trick, to put me from my fuit; I pray, let Caffio be receiv'd again. Oth. Fetch me that handkerchief: my mind misgives. Def. Come, come; You'll never meet a more fufficient man. Oth. The handkerchief, Def. I pray, talk me of Caffio 5. Oth. The handkerchief, Def. A man that, all his time, Hath founded his good fortune on your love; Oth. The handkerchief, Def. In footh you are to blame. Oth. Away! Emil. Is not this man jealous? Def. I ne'er faw this before. [Exit OTHELLO. Sure, there's fome wonder in this handkerchief: I am most unhappy in the lofs of it. Emil. 'Tis not a year or two fhews us a man 6. They 5 I pray, talk me of Caffio.] This and the following fhort speech are omitted in all ancient editions but the first quarto. STEEVENS. 6 'Tis not a year or two shews us a man] From this line it may be conjectured, that the author intended the action of this play to be confidered as longer than is marked by any note of time. Since their arrival at Cyprus, to which they were hurried on their wedding-night, the fable feems to have been in one continual progrefs, nor can I fee any vacuity into which a year or two, or even a month or two, could be put. On the night of Othello's arrival, a feast was proclaimed; at that feaft Caffio was degraded, and immediately applies to Desdemona to get him reftored. lago indeed advifes Othello to hold him off a while, but there is no reafon to think, that he has been held off long. A little longer interval would increafe the probability of the ftory, though it might violate the rules of the drama. See Act. V. fc. ii. JOHNSON. This line has no reference to the duration of the action of this play, or to the length of time that Desdemona had been married. What |