Chapter CL: Act II

SC. 1. "What harm can your beesome conspectuities glean out of this
character?"

Regarding 'beesome' as a corruption, the editors have all adopted Theobald's reading, _bisson_, which occurs in Hamlet (ii. 2) in the sense of blinding. Mr. Singer, however, quotes from Huloet's Dictionary "Blynde or _Beasom_borne, cæcigenus," which proves the text to be right.

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"_For_ these in honour follows Coriolanus."

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"I have lived
To see inherited my very wishes,
And the buildings of my fancy * * *"

We might supply _turn'd to sense_.

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"Whiles she chats _of_ him. The kitchen malkin pins."

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"At some time when his soaring influence
Shall teach the people."

There is perhaps an aposiopesis here; otherwise I should incline to read _touch_, as Mr. Knight and Collier's folio also read.

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"The blind to hear him speak. Matrons flung _their_ gloves."

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SC. 2. "We met here, both to thank and to remember."

Editors in general read _meet_. I read 'We _are_ met.'

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"We shall be blest to do, if he remember."

Collier's folio read _prest_, i.e. ready; but no change is needed. "And then _we shall be bless'd_ To do your pleasure" (King John iii. 1). It is the same as _happy_ of the present day.

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"Alone he entered
The mortal gate of the city, which he painted
With shunless destiny."

I do not see the meaning of 'painted' here. Perhaps the right word is _parted_, i.e. burst open, as it had been closed on him, i. 5. In Rom. and Jul. ii. 5 we have the same change of _ar_ to _ain_.

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SC. 3. "Some brown, some black, some auburn."

For 'auburn' the folio has _abraham_.

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"The price _of it_ is to ask it kindly.--Kindly?"

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"Why in this woolvish tongue should I stand here."

As, in Othello (i. 1), the folio reads "_tongued_ consuls" for "_toged_ consuls" of the 4to, editors here properly read _toge_ for 'tongue'; the 2nd folio has _gown_. As 'woolvish' offers very little sense, we should, with Collier's folio, read _woolless_; for it has been already (ii. 1) termed "the _napless_ vesture of humility."

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"I have seen and heard of; for your voices _I_
Have done many things, some less, some more. Your voices."

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"That our best water brought by conduits hither,
And nobly nam'd so, twïce being Censor."

That a line has been lost here is beyond doubt. Pope, who is generally followed, added, "And Censorinus, darling of the people." But as the words in North's Plutarch are "so surnamed because the people had chosen him censor twice," it might be better to read "_And Censorinus, he that was so nam'd_."