SCENE XIII.

To them, Enter Fool.

Fool. Let me hire him too. Here's my coxcomb.
[Giving Kent his cap.
Lear. How now, my pretty knave? how do'st thou?
Fool. Sirrah, you were best take my coxcomb.
Kent. Why, my boy ?

Fool. Why? for taking one's part, that is out of favour: Nay, an thou canst not smile as the wind fits, thou'lt catch cold shortly. There, take my coxcomb. Why, this fellow has banish'd two of his daughters, and did the third a blessing against his will; if thou follow him, thou must needs wear my coxcomb. How now, nuncle? Would I had + two.coxcombs, and two daughters.

Lear. Why, my boy?

Fool. If I give them all my living, I'll keep my coxcombs myself. There's mine, beg another of thy daughters.

Lear. Take heed, Sirrah, the whip.

Fool. Truth's a dog must to kennel; he must be whip'd out, when the lady brach may stand by th' fire and stink.

Lear. A peftilent gall to me.

Fool. Sirrah, I'll teach thee a speech. (To Kent.

Lear. Do.

Fool. Mark it, nuncle.

3 take my coxcomb.) Meaning his cap, called fso, because on the top of the fool or jester's cap was sewed a piece of red cloth, resembling the comb of a cock. The word, afterwards, used to

denote a vain conceited meddling fellow. WARBURTON.

+ two coxcombs,] Two fools caps, intended, as it seems, to mark double folly in the man that gives all to his daughters.

D 2

Have

1

Have more than thou showest,
Speak leis than thou knowest,
* Lend less than thou owest,
Ride more than thou goest,
5 Learn more than thou trowest,
Set less than thou throweft,
Leave thy drink and thy whore,
And keep within door,
And thou shalt have more
Than two tens to a score.

Kent. This is nothing, fool.

"Fool. Then it is like the breath of an unfee'd lawyer, you gave me nothing for't. Can you make no ufe of nothing, nuncle?

L

Lear. Why, no, boy; nothing can be made out of nothing.

Fool. Pr'ythee, tell him, fo much the rent of his land comes to. He will not believe a fool. [To Kent. Lear. A bitter fool!

Fool. Dost thou know the difference, my boy, between a bitter fool and a sweet one?.. Lear. No, lad, teach me.

Fool. That Lord, that counsel'd thee to give away

thy Land,

Come, place him here by me! do thou for him stand;
The sweet and bitter Fool will presently appear,
The one, in motley here; the other, found out there.
Lear. Dost thou call me fool, boy?

Fool. All thy other titles thou hast given away;

that thou wast born with.

* Lend less than thou owest,]
That is, do not lend all that thou
haft. To owe in Old English is
to possess. If owe be taken for
to be in debt, the more prudent
precept would be,

Lend more than thou oweft.
5 Learn more than thoutrowest,]
To there, is an old word which

1.

fignifies to believe. The precept is admirable.

WARD.

• This dialogue, from No, lad, teach me, down to, Give me an egg, was restored from the first edition by Mr. Theobald. It is omitted in the folio, perhaps for political reasons, as it feemed to cenfure monopolies.

Kent.

Kent. This is not altogether fool, my Lord. Fool. No, faith; Lords, and great men will not let me; ' if I had a monopoly on't, they would have part on't: nay, the Ladies too, they'll not let me have all fool to myself, they'll be snatching. Give me an egg, nuncle, and I'll give thee two crowns, Lear. What two crowns shall they be ? Fool. Why, after I have cut the egg i' th' middle and eat up the meat, the two crowns of the egg. When thou clovest thy Crown i' th' middle and gav'st away both parts, thou bor'st thine ass on thy back o'er the dirt. Thou hadst little wit in thy bald crown, when thou gav'st thy golden crown away. If I speak like myself in this, let him be whip'd that first finds it so.

8

Fools ne'er bad less grace in a year,
For wife men are grown foppish;
And know not how their wits to wear.
Their manners are so apish.

[Singing.

Lear. When were you won't to be so full of fongs, Grrah?

Fool. I have used it, nuncle, e'er since thou mad'ft thy daughters thy mothers; for when thou gav'st them the rod, and put'st down thy own breeches,

Then they for fudden joy did weep,

And I for forrow fung,

That such a King should play bo-peep,
And go the fools among.

[Singing.

Pr'ythee, nuncle, keep a school-master that can teach thy fool to lye; I would fain learn to lye.

Lear. If you lye, firrah, we'll have you whipt. Fool. I marvel what kin thou and thy daughters are: they'll have me whipt for speaking true, thou'l have me whipt for lying; and, fometimes, I am whipt for holding my peace. I had rather be any kind o'thing than a fool, and yet I would not be thee, nuncle; thou hast pared thy wit o'both fides, and left nothing i'th' middle; here comes one o'th'parings.

Lear. How now, daughter, what makes that frontlet on? You are too much of late i'th' frown.

:

Fool. Thou wast a pretty fellow, when thou hadst no need to care for her frowning; now thou art an o without a figure; I am better than thou art now; I am a fool, thou art nothing.Yes, forsooth, I will hold my tongue; [To Gonerill.] so your face bids me, tho' you say nothing...

Mum, mum, He that keeps nor crust nor crum, [Singing. Weary of all, shall want some.

That's a fheal'd peascod.

[Pointing to Lear,

Gon. Not only, Sir, thus your all-licens'd fool,
But others of your infolent retinue,
Do hourly carp and quarrel, breaking forth
In rank and not to be endured riots.

I thought, by making this well known unto you,
T' have found a fafe redress; but now grow fearful,
By what yourself too late have spoke and done,
That you protect this course, and put it on
By your allowance; if you should, the fault
Would not 'scape censure, nor the redresses sleep,
Which, in the tender of a wholesome weal,
Might in their working do you that offence,

1

Which else were shame, that then neceffity
Will call difcreet proceeding.

Fool. For you know, nuncle,

The hedge sparrow fed the Cuckoo so long,
That it had its head bit off by its Young.
So out went the candle, and we were left darkling.
Lear. Are you our daughter?

Gon, I would, you would make use of your good

wisdom,

Whereof I know you are fraught, and put away
Thete dispositions, which of late transport you

From what you rightly are,

Fool. May not an Ass know when the cart draws the horse? * Whoop, Jug, I love thee.

Lear. Does any here know me? This is not Lear.
Does Lear walk thus? speak thus? where are his eyes?
Either his notion weakens, his difcernings
Are lethargy'd-Ha! waking? 'tis not so,
Who is it that can tell me who I am?

Fool. Lear's shadow,

• Whoop, Jug, &c.] There are in the fool's speeches several passages which seem to be proverbial allusions, perhaps not now to be understood.

9 Fool. Lear's shadow.] I have given this passage according to the first folio. The quarto, which the modern editors have followed, makes Lear con. tinue the speech thus:

- Woo I am?

Lear's shadow? I would learn
that'; for by the marks
Of Sovereignty, of knowledge
and reajon,

I should be false perfuaded 1 bad
daughters.

Your name, fair gentlewoman?
I think the folio in this place
preferable. Dr. Warburton has
inferted these lines with the fol-

lowing note:

- for by the marks Of Sovereignty, of knowledge,

and of reason.] His daughters prove so unnatural, that, if he were only to judge by the reafon of things, he must conclude, they cannot be his daughters. This is the thought. But how does his kingship or fovereignty enable him to judge in this mat ter? The line, by being false pointed, has lost its sense. We should read,

Of sovereignty of knowledge,i. e. the understanding. He calls it, by an equally fine phrafe, in Hamlet, Sov'reignty of reaso And it is remarkable that the Editors had depraved it there too. See Note, Act 1. Scene 7. of that

play.

D4

WARBURTON.
Lear