MER. Ay, Apemantus. APEM. Traffick confound thee, if the gods will not! MER. If traffick do it, the gods do it. APEM. Traffick's thy god, and thy god confound thee! Trumpets found. Enter a Servant. TIM. What trumpet's that? SERV. 'Tis Alcibiades, and Some twenty horfe, all of companionship.3 us. TIM. Pray, entertain them; give them guide to [Exeunt fome Attendants. You must needs dine with me:-Go not you hence, Till I have thank'd you; and, when dinner's done, Show me this piece.—I am joyful of your fights. Enter ALCIBIADES, with his Company. Moft welcome, fir! APEM. So, fo! there! [They falute. Aches contract and ftarve your fupple joints!That there fhould be small love 'mongst these sweet knaves, And all this court'fy! The ftrain of man's bred out Into baboon and monkey. 3 5 all of companionship.] This expreffion does not mean barely that they all belong to one company, but that they are all fuch as Alcibiades honours with his acquaintance, and fets on a level with himself. STEEVENS. 4 and, when dinner's done,] And, which is wanting in the firft folio, is fupplied by the fecond. STEEVENS. 5 The ftrain of man's bred out Into baboon and monkey. Man is exhaufted and degenerated; his ftrain or lineage is worn down into a monkey. JOHNSON, ALCIB. Sir, you have fav'd my longing, and I feed Moft hungrily on your fight. TIM. 5 Right welcome, fir: Fre we depart, we'll fhare a bounteous time [Exeunt all but APEMANTUS. Enter two Lords. 1. LORD. What time a day is't, Apemantus? APEM. Time to be honeft. 1 LORD. That time ferves ftill. APEM. The most accurfed thou, that ftill omit'st it. 2. LORD. Thou art going to lord Timon's 'feaft. APEM. Ay; to fee meat fill knaves, and wine heat fools. 2. LORD. Fare thee well, fare thee well. APEM. Thou art a fool, to bid me farewell twice.. 2. LORD. Why, Apemantus? APEM. Shouldft have kept one to thyfelf, for I mean to give thee none. Ere we depart,] Who depart? Though Alcibiades was to leave Timon, Timon was not to depart. Common fenfe favours my emendation. THEOBALD. Mr. Theobald propofes-do part. Common fenfe may favour it, but an acquaintance with the language of Shakspeare would not have been quite fo propitious to his emendation. Depart and part have the fame meaning. So, in King John: Hath willingly departed with a part." i. c. hath willingly parted with a part of the thing in queftion. See Vol. XI. p. 355, n. 2. STEEVENS. 6 The most accurfed thou,] Read: The more accurfed thou, So in The Two Gentlemen of Verona: RITSON. "The more degenerate and base art thou-." STEEVENS. 1. LORD, Hang thyself. APEM. No, I will do nothing at thy bidding: make thy requests to thy friend. 2. LORD. Away, unpeaceable dog, or I'll spurn thee hence. APEM. I will fly, like a dog, the heels of the afs. [Exit. 1. LORD. He's oppofite to humanity. Come, fhall we in, And tafte lord Timon's bounty? he outgoes 2. LORD. He pours it out; Plutus, the god of Is but his fteward: no meed,' but he repays 1. LORD. 8 The nobleft mind he carries, That ever govern'd man. 7 2. LORD. Long may he live in fortunes! Shall we in? 1. LORD. I'll keep you company. [Exeunt. --no meed,] Meed, which in general fignifies reward or recompence, in this place feems to mean defert. So, in Heywood's Silver Age, 1613: i. And yet thy body meeds a better grave. 19 e. deferves. Again, in a comedy called Look about you, 1600: "Thou shalt be rich in honour, full of speed; "Thou shalt win foes by fear, and friends by meed." See Vol. XV, p. 45, n. 6. STEEVEns. All ufe of quittance.] i. e. all the cuftomary returns made is difcharge of obligations. WARBurton. SCENE II. The fame. A Room of State in Timon's Houfe. Hautboys playing loud mufick. A great banquet ferved in FLAVIUS and others attending; then enter TIMON, ALCIBIADES, LUCIUS, LUCULLUS, SEMPRONIUS, and other Athenian Senators, with VENTIDIUS and Attendants. Then comes, dropping after all, APEMANTUS, difcontentedly. 8 VEN. Moft honour'd Timon, 't hath pleas'd the gods remember 9 My father's age, and call him to long peace. I deriv'd liberty. TIM. O, by no means, Honeft Ventidius: you miftake my love; I gave it freely ever; and there's none Can truly fay, he gives, if he receives: difcontentedly.] 3himself. STEEVens. The ancient ftage-dire&ion adds-like 9 Moft honour'd Timon, 't hath pleas'd the gods remember] The old copy reads to remember. But have omitted, for the fake of metre, and in conformity to our author's practice on other occafons, the adverb-to. Thus in King Henry VIII. A& IV. fc. ii. Vol. XVI. p. 158: Patience, is that letter "I caus'd you write, yet fent away?" Every one must be aware that the particle-to was purpofely left out, before the verb-write. STEEVENS. If our betters play at that game, we muft not dare ย If our betters play at that game, we must not dare Tliefe two lines are abfurdly given to Timon. They should be read thus: Tim. If our belters play at that game, we must not. Apem. Dare to imitate them. Faults that are rich are fair. It was a fober reflection in Timon; who by our betters meant the gods, which require to be repaid for benefits received; but it would be impiety in men to exped the fame obfervance for the trifling good they do. Apemantus, agreeably to his charader, perverts this fentiment; if Timou had fpoke of earthly grandeur and potentates, who expec largeft returns for their favours; and therefore, irouically replies as above. WARBURTON. This is faid fatirically, and in character. as I cannot fee that thefe lines are more proper in any other mouth than limon's, to whofe chara&er of generofity and condefcenfion they are very suitable. To fuppofe that by our betters are meant the gods, is very harsh, becaufe to imitate the gods has been hitherto reckoned the highest pitch of human virtue. The whole is a trite and obvious thought, uttered by Timon with a kind of affeded modefty. If I would make any alteration, it should be only to reform the numbers thus: Our belters play that game; we must not dare 'T imitate them: faults that are rich are fair. JOHNSON. The faults of rich perfous, and which contribute to the increase of riches, wear a plaufible appearance, and as the world goes are thought fair; but they are faults notwithstanding. HEATH. Dr. Warburton with his ufual love of innovation, transfers the laft word of the firft of thefe lines, and the whole of the fecoud to Apemantus. Mr. Heath has juftly obferved that this cannot bave been Shakspeare's intention, for thus Apemantus would be made to addrefs Timon perfonally, who must therefore have seen and heard him; whereas it appears from a fubfequent fpeech that Timon had not yet taken notice of him, as he falutes him with fome furprize "O, Apemantus!-you are welcome." The term-our betters, being used by the inferior claffes of men when they speak of their fuperiors in the ftate, Shakspeare ufes thefe words, with his ufual laxity, to express perfons of high rank and fortune. MALONE. So, in King Lear, A& III. fc. vi. Edgar fays, (referring to the diftra&ed king): "When we our betters fee bearing our woes, "We fcarcely think our miseries our foes." STEEVENS C |