"This prophecy Merlin fhall make, for I do live "before his time."

This Merlin is the prophet Dan Geoffrey Chaucer. Among fome verfes prefixed to the prologues of the Canterbury tales are the following, intitled Chaucer's Prophecie.

"When faith faylith in Prieft'is fawes,
"And lordes heftes are holde for lawes,
"And robberie is bolde purchace,
"And letcherie is bolde folace;
" Then shall the lond of Albion
"Be brought to great confufion."

Shakespeare has taken this prophecy; but to make it more refemble the oracular refponfes of antiquity, and the prophetical ftile, he has artfully involved it in a feeming confufion: 'Tis ONE prophecy confifting of two parts; the former part having a relation to what now is; the latter to what never fhall be. The fool to the two lines of Chaucer, bas humourously added two lines of his own, which properly can be referred only to the former part of the prophecy and if by this humourous addition, there is any feeming irregularity, it is more after the caft, as I have faid above, of Oracles.

FALSTAFF (In the Merry Wives of Windfor, Act II.) Speaking to Piftol, fays"And yet you

rogue will ensconse your rags, your cat-a-moun

"tain looks, your red-lettice phrases, and your "BOLD-BEATING oaths, under the shelter of your " bonour!

"Your BOLD-BEATING oaths.] We should read, BOLD-BEARING Oaths. i. e. out-facing." Mr.W. But a BOLD-BEATING oath is a bold impudent roufing oath the metaphor is taken from the old phrafe, to beat the fire: i. e. to rouse and stir it up: from the Anglo-S. betan, excitare. Hence in French, Boutefeu, an incendiary: and hence too comes, to abet, an abettor, in the barbarous Latinity, abbettator. And here give me leave to explain a paffage in Chaucer. [In the Reve's Tale. Urry's edition. p. 31. †. 828.]

"He was a Markit beter at the full."

i. e. fays the Glossary," one that makes quarrels in "markets." But a market beter, is one who raifes the price of the market; as the word above criticized fhews. To beat the fire Chaucer ufes in the Knight's tale. [p. 17. edit. Urry.]

"I woll don facrifice, and firis bete.' And Douglas in his verfion of Virgil. En. I, 217. flammafque ministrant,

"And uthir fum bet the fyre."

IN the fecond part of King Henry VI. A& I. Queen Margaret calls the King "Mine alder-lieveft

"Sovereign." "Alder-lieveft (fays Mr. W.) is "an old English word given to him to whom the Speaker is SUPREMELY attached: Lieveft be

..

ing the fuperlative of the comparative, levar, "rather, from lief." If the reader can make any thing of this note, he may perceive, ft, that Mr. W. thought aldir-lieveft was applied only to one in fupreme authority: 2dly, the most difficult word of all, aldir, poor critic-like, be has entirely omitted: 3dly, the most eafy word of all, lievest, he knows little or nothing of. Now aldir-lieveft fignifies nothing else but deareft of all: In Chaucer's Troilus and Crefeide. L. III. y. 240. Pandarus calls Troilus his aldir-lieveft Lord. From the Anglo-S. leof, dear. In the Anglo-S. verfion of the Goffel, Luke xx. . 13. My beloved fun, minne leofan fanu. Douglas in his tranflation of Virgil, I, 28. pro charis Argis.-" The Grekis to hir

leif and dere." Will the learned reader excuse my bringing it from the Greek Qixos, charus; per metathefin? However from lief, comes leicfer, lever, leveft. I had as lief, is now a known expreffion. With respect to the other word, Aldir, Althir, or Aller, 'tis a vitious pronunciation of alra, callra, the genitive cafe plural of al, and talle. See Hicks Grammat. Anglo-S. f. 16. In Chaucer, aldirmoft is most of all. And in the prologue of the Canterbury tales, y. 801.

"Shall have a fupper at our alder cost.”

i. e. at the cost of us all.

IN Macbeth, Act III.

"Lady. You have difplac'd the mirth, broke "the good meeting "With most admir'd diforder.

"Macb. Can fuch things be,

"And OVERCOME us, like a fummer's cloud, "Without our special wonder?"

Overcome us. i. e. come over us, overcast us. So Chaucer in the Lamentation of Marie Magd. [p. 521. Urry's edit.]

"With blode OVIRCOME were bothe his "eyen."

i. e. covered over. And in Troil. and Creff. L. IV. . 1069.

"That whilom ben bifall and OVIRCOME." Where befal and ovircome, are used as fynonymous words. 'Tis to be remember'd that the Ghost of Banquo appears to no one except Macbeth: and the Queen thinks all the starts and horrors of Macbeth to be nothing but the very painting of his fear : the Queen therefore as much admires at Macbeth for his ftarting; as Macbeth does at the coolness

and

and calmness of the Queen and the guests: be therefore very pertinently afks, "How can fuch vifions

as thefe overcast us, and overcloud all our joys, "as fudden as a black cloud intercepts a chearful fummer's day, and you not be ftricken with won"der and amazement ?" Now let us hear our great Critic:

"And overcome us like a fummer's cloud, "Without our special wonder ?"] Why not? If they be only like a fummer's cloud? The fpeech "is given wrong; it is part of the Lady's foregoing fpeech; and, befides that, is a little cor"rupt. We should read it thus,

"CAN'T fuch things be,

"And overcome us like a fummer's cloud, "Without our special wonder?

i. e. cannot thefe vifions, without fo much won"der and amazement, be prefented to the disturbed "imagination in the manner that air-vifions, in fummer clouds, are presented to a wanton one : "which fometimes fhew a lion, a caftle or a promontory? The thought is fine, and in character. " overcome IS USED FOR Deceive." Mr. W.