Chapter X: Epilogue

The banisht Cavaliers! a Roving Blade! A popish Carnival! a Masquerade! The Devil’s in’t if this will please the Nation, In these our blessed Times of Reformation, When Conventicling is so much in Fashion. And yet— That mutinous Tribe less Factions do beget, Than your continual differing in Wit; Your Judgment’s (as your Passions) a Disease: Nor Muse nor Miss your Appetite can please; You’re grown as nice as queasy Consciences, Whose each Convulsion, when the Spirit moves, Damns every thing that Maggot disapproves.

With canting Rule you wou’d the Stage refine, And to dull Method all our Sense confine. With th’ Insolence of Common-wealths you rule, Where each gay Fop, and politick brave Fool, On Monarch Wit impose without controul. As for the last who seldom sees a Play, Unless it be the old Black-Fryers way, 106 Shaking his empty Noddle o’er _Bamboo_, He crys—Good Faith, these Plays will never do. —Ah, Sir, in my young days, what lofty Wit, What high-strain’d Scenes of Fighting there were writ: These are slight airy Toys. But tell me, pray, What has the _House of Commons_ done to day? Then shews his Politicks, to let you see Of State Affairs he’ll judge as notably, As he can do of Wit and Poetry.

The younger Sparks, who hither do resort, Cry— Pox o’ your gentle things, give us more Sport; —Damn me, I’m sure ’twill never please the Court.

Such Fops are never pleas’d, unless the Play Be stuff’d with Fools, as brisk and dull as they: Such might the Half-Crown spare, and in a Glass At home behold a more accomplisht Ass, Where they may set their Cravats, Wigs and Faces, And practice all their Buffoonry Grimaces; See how this—Huff becomes—this Dammy—flare— Which they at home may act, because they dare, But—must with prudent Caution do elsewhere. Oh that our _Nokes_, or _Tony Lee_ could show A Fop but half so much to th’ Life as you.

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POST-SCRIPT

THIS Play had been sooner in Print, but for a Report about the Town (made by some either very Malitious or very Ignorant) that ’twas _Thomaso_ altered; which made the Book-sellers fear some trouble from the Proprietor of that Admirable Play, which indeed has Wit enough to stock a Poet, and is not to be piec’t or mended by any but the Excellent Author himself; That I have stol’n some hints from it may be a proof, that I valu’d it more than to pretend to alter it: had I had the Dexterity of some Poets who are not more expert in stealing than in the Art of Concealing, and who even that way out-do the _Spartan-_Boys I might have appropriated all to myself, but I, vainly proud of my Judgment hang out the Sign of Angelica (the only Stol’n Object) to give Notice where a great part of the Wit dwelt; though if the Play of the _Novella_ were as well worth remembring as _Thomaso_, they might (bating the Name) have as well said, I took it from thence: I will only say the Plot and Bus’ness (not to boast on’t) is my own: as for the Words and Characters, I leave the Reader to judge and compare ’em with _Thomaso_, to whom I recommend the great Entertainment of reading it, tho’ had this succeeded ill, I shou’d have had no need of imploring that Justice from the Critics, who are naturally so kind to any that pretend to usurp their Dominion, they wou’d doubtless have given me the whole Honour on’t. Therefore I will only say in _English_ what the famous _Virgil_ does in Latin: _I make Verses and others have the Fame_.

429

Notes on the Text.

Rover I.

Dramatis Personæ

p. 9 _Diego, Page to Don Antonio._ Neither 4tos nor 1724 give the page’s name, but it is furnished by the stage direction Act ii. I, p. 32. I have added Hellena’s page, Belvile’s page, and Blunt’s man to the list as it appears in 4tos and 1724.

p. 9 _Angelica._ 4tos give ‘Angellica’ throughout. I have retained 1724 ‘Angelica’ as more correct.

Act I: Scene i

p. 12, l. 5 _my things._ 1724 misprints ‘methinks’.

Act I: Scene ii

p. 17, l. 14 _as those which ..._ 4to 1677 prints this as a separate line of blank verse. 4to 1709 italicizes it.

p. 23, l. 12 _She often passes ..._ 4to 1709 puts this stage direction before Blunt’s speech.

p. 24, l. 18 _Ex. all the Women._ I have added ‘except Lucetta’ as she is individually directed to make her exit with Blunt later and not at this point.

Act II: Scene i

p. 32, l. 23 _Pedro. Ha!_ 1724 omits.

p. 32, l. 28 _aside._ 1724 omits.

p. 35, l. 33 _his shirt bloody._ 1724 gives ‘their shirts’ but 4tos, more correctly, ‘his shirt’. It is only Willmore who has been wounded.

Act II: Scene ii

p. 38, l. 6 _high i’ th’ Mouth._ 1724, 1735 misprint ‘Month’.

p. 39, l. 8 _This last reserve._ 1724 omits ‘reserve’.

p. 39, l. 10 _by me._ 1724 omits the repetition of ‘by me’.

p. 39, l. 14 _cure._ 1724 misprints ‘curse’.

p. 40, l. 9 _Thou art a brave Fellow._ 1724 prints this speech as prose but the 4tos, which I have followed, divide metrically.

Act III: Scene i

p. 44, l. 1 _Thou wou’t._ 4to 1677. 1724 wrongly reads ‘won’t’. 1735 ‘Thou’lt’.

p. 45, l. 8 _ago._ 4to 1677. 1724 misprints ‘go’.

p. 47, l. 26 _starts._ 4tos read ‘stares’ but I retain 1724 ‘starts’ as more appropriate.

p. 47, l. 31 _Expect!_ 1724 gives this speech as prose. I follow metrical division of 4tos.

p. 49, l. 16 _rally._ 1724 misprints ‘railly’.

p. 52, l. 5 _Exeunt._ 1724 omits this necessary stage direction.

Act III: Scene ii

p. 52, l. 31 _Exit._ 1724 misprints ‘aside’.

p. 53, l. 5 _Enter Sancho._ 4tos, but misprint after Sancho’s speech. 1724 omits, but misprints an ‘exit Sancho’, and gives ‘exit’ after Blunt’s speech instead of ‘exeunt’.

Act III: Scene iia

p. 54, l. 9 _Pimps!_ 1724 ‘Imps’.

p. 55, l. 12 _sheer._ 4to 1677. 4to 1709 and 1724 read wrongly ‘share’.

Act IV: Scene i

p. 64, l. 4 _Ant._ 4to 1677 wrongly gives this speech to Belvile. 4to 1709 and ed. 1724 assign it correctly.

430 p. 64, l. 14 _That Opinion._ 1724 prints this speech as prose. I follow metrical division of 4tos.