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And leave me out on't. 'Would I had no being,
If this falute my blood a jot; it faints me,
To think what follows.

The queen is comfortless, and we forgetful
In our long absence: Pray, do not deliver
What here you have heard, to her.

OLD L.

What do you think me?

[Exeunt.

SCENE IV.

A Hall in Black-Fryars.

Trumpets, Jennet, and cornets. Enter two Vergers,

with fhort filver wands; next them, two Scribes, in

3 fennet,] Dr. Burney (whofe General Hiftory of Mufick has been fo highly and defervedly applauded) undertook to trace the etymology, and difcover the certain meaning of this term, but without fuccefs. The following conjecture of his, fhould not, however, be withheld from the publick:

“Senné or fennie, de l'Allemand fen, qui fignifie affemblee, Dict. de vieux Language:

• Senne, affemblee a fon de cloche. Menage.

Perhaps, therefore, fays he, fennet may mean a flourish for the purpose of affembling chiefs, or apprizing the people of their approach. I have likewife been informed, (as is elfewhere noted,) that fenefte is the name of an antiquated French tune." See Julius Cafar, A&t I. fc. ii. STEEVENS.

In the fecond part of Marfton's Antonio and Mellida:

"Cornets found a cynet." FARMER.

A Senet appears to have fignified a fhort flourish on cornets. In King Henry VI. P. III. after the king and the duke of York have entered into a compact in the parliament-houfe, we find this marginal direction: "Senet. Here they [the lords] come down [from their feats]." In that place a flourish must have been meant. The direction which has occafioned this note, fhould be, I believe, fen

net on cornets.

In Marlowe's King Edward II. we find "Cornets found a fignate."

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the habits of doctors; after them, the Archbishop of Canterbury alone; after him, the Bishops of Lincoln, Ely, Rochester, and Saint Afaph; next them, with fome small distance, follows a gentleman bearing the purse, with the great feal, and a cardinal's hat; then two Priests, bearing each a filver crofs; then a Gentleman-usher bare-headed, accompanied with a Sergeant at arms, bearing a filver mace; then two Gentlemen, bearing two great filver pillars; after them, fide by fide, the two Cardinals

Senet or fignate was undoubtedly nothing more than a flourish or founding. The Italian Sonata formerly fignified nothing more.

See Florio's Italian Dict. 1611 in v.

That Senet was merely the corrupt pronunciation of fignate, is afcertained by the following entry in the folio MS. of Mr. Henflowe, who appears to have spelt entirely by the ear:

"Laid out at fundry times, of my own ready money, abowt the gainynge of ower comyfion, as followeth, 1597.

"Laid out for goinge to the corte to the Master of the Requeafts, xiid.

" Item. Paid unto the clerk of the Senette, 40s." MALONE.

-Archbishop of Canterbury,Bishops of Lincoln, Ely, Rochefter, and Saint Afaph;] These were, William Warham, John Longland, Nicholas Weft, John Fisher, and Henry Standish. Weft, Fisher, and Standish, were counsel for the Queen. REED. 5-pillars;] Pillars were fome of the enfigns of dignity carried before cardinals. Sir Thomas More, when he was speaker to the commons, advised them to admit Wolfey into the house with his maces and his pillars. More's Life of Sir T. More.

JOHNSON.
Skelton, in his Satire against cardinal Wolfey, has these lines:
"With worldly pompe incredible,
"Before him rydeth two preftes stronge;
"And they bear two croffes right longe,
"Gapynge in every man's face:

"After them folowe two laye men fecular,
"And each of theym holdyn a pillar,

"In their hondes fteade of a mace.'

STEEVENS.

At the end of Fiddes's Life of Cardinal Wolfey, is a curious letter of Mr. Anftis's on the fubject of the two filver pillars usually borne

WOLSEY and CAMPEIUS; two Noblemen with the fword and mace. Then enter the King and Queen, and their trains. The King takes place under the cloth of fate; the two Cardinals fit under him, as judges. The Queen takes place, at fome distance from the King. The Bishops place themfelves on each fide the court, in manner of a confiftory; below them, the Scribes. The Lords fit next the Bishops. The Crier and the reft of the attendants ftand in convenient order about the stage.

WOL. Whilft our commiffion from Rome is read, Let filence be commanded.

K. HEN.

What's the need?

It hath already publickly been read,
And on all fides the authority allow'd;
You may then spare that time.

WOL.

Be't fo-Proceed.

SCRIBE. Say, Henry king of England, come into the court.

CRIER. Henry king of England, &c.

before Cardinal Wolfey. This remarkable piece of pageantry did not escape the notice of Shakspeare. PERCY.

Wolfey had two great croffes of filver, the one of his archbishoprick, the other of his legacy, borne before him whitherfoever he went or rode, by two of the tallest priests that he could get within the realm. This is from Vol. III. p. 920, of Holinfhed, and it feems from p. 837, that one of the pillars was a token of a cardinal, and perhaps he bore the other pillar as an archbishop.

TOLLET.

One of Wolfey's croffes certainly denoted his being Legate, as the other was borne before him either as cardinal or archbishop. "On the day of the fame moneth (fays Hall) the cardinall removed out of his houfe called Yorke Place, with one croffe, faying, that he would he had never borne more, meaning that by hys croffe which he bore as legate, which degree-taking was his confufion," Chron. Henry VIII. 104. b. MALONE.

K. HEN. Here.

SCRIBE. Say, Katharine queen of England, come

into court.

CRIER. Katharine queen of England, &c.

[The Queen makes no answer, rifes out of her chair, goes about the court, comes to the King, and kneels at his feet; then Speaks.]

2. KATH. Sir, I defire you, do me right and juftice;"

And to bestow your pity on me: for

I am a most poor woman, and a stranger,
Born out of your dominions; having here
No judge indifferent, nor no more affurance
Of equal friendship and proceeding. Alas, fir,
In what have I offended you? what caufe
Hath my behaviour given to your displeasure,
That thus you fhould proceed to put me off,
And take your good grace from me? Heaven wit-
nefs,

8

I have been to you a true and humble wife,
At all times to your will conformable:
Ever in fear to kindle your dislike,

6 goes about the court,] "Because (fays Cavendish) fhe could not come to the king directlie, for the distance fevered between them." MALONE.

7 Sir, I defire you do, me right and juftice; &c.] This fpeech of the queen, and the king's reply, are taken from Holinfhed with the most trifling variations. STEEVENS.

8 At all times to your will conformable :] The character Queen Katharine here prides herfelf for, is given to another Queen in The Hiftorie of the uniting of the Kingdom of Portugall to the Crowne of Caftill, fo. 1600, p. 238: " at which time Queene Anne his wife fell ficke of a rotten fever, the which in few daies brought her to another life; wherewith the King was much grieved being a lady wholly conformable to his humour. REED.

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Yea, fubject to your countenance; glad, or forry,
As I faw it inclin'd. When was the hour,

I ever contradicted your defire,

Or made it not mine too? Or which of your friends
Have I not strove to love, although I knew
He were mine enemy? what friend of mine,
That had to him deriv'd your anger, did I
Continue in my liking? nay, gave notice'
He was from thence discharg'd? Sir, call to mind
That I have been your wife, in this obedience,
Upward of twenty years, and have been bleft
With many children by you: If, in the course
And procefs of this time, you can report,
And prove it too, against mine honour aught,
My bond to wedlock, or my love and duty,
Against your facred perfon, in God's name,

9 nay, gave notice-] In modern editions:

nay, gave not notice

Though the author's common liberties of fpeech might justify the old reading, yet I cannot but think that not was dropped before notice, having the fame letters, and would therefore follow Sir T. Hanmer's correction. JOHNSON.

Our author is fo licentious in his construction that I suspect no corruption. MALONE.

Perhaps this inaccuracy (like a thousand others) is chargeable only on the blundering fuperintendants of the first folio.-Inftead of nay, we might read:

2

nor gave notice

He was from thence difcharg'd? 'STEEVENS.

or my love and duty,

Againft your facred perfon,] There feems to be an error in the phrafe Againft your facred perfon;" but I don't know how to amend it. The fenfe would require that we should read, “ Towards your facred perfon," or fome word of a fimilar import, which against will not bear; and it is not likely that against should be written by mistake for towards. M. MASON.

In the old copy there is not a comma in the preceding line after duty. Mr. M. Mafon has juftly obferved that with fuch a punctuation the fenfe requires-Towards your facred perfon. A comma being

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