Page 342 - King Lear: The Cambridge Dover Wilson Shakespeare

5.3. NOTES 26j
fortune (Rowe), F 'fire new Fortune'. Cf. R. Ill, I. 3.
256, 'Your fire-new stamp of honour'.
134. illustrious (Q) F 'illustirous'. prince Alb.
135-6. from.. foot A bombastic way of saying' from
head to foot'. 136. descent see G.
140. In wisdom Because a knight should refuse to
fight with one of lower rank.
142. tongue some say (Mai.) Q 'being some say', F
'tongue (some say)', Q, F misinterpret 'say'. See G.
143. <F. £>om.
146. hell-hated as hateful as hell.
147. Which Antecedent 'treasons'. yor=since.
bruise sc. me.
148. give.-..way =make room for, carve out a passage
for. them**'treasons' (1. 145); 'Which' (1. 147) being
left without predicate by change of construction.
149. Where Ref. to Edg.'s heart. Where...ever.
'His success in the combat will prove that Edgar is the
traitor, and the treasons will remain with the victim'
(Muir). S.D. (Han., subs!) F 'Alarums. Fights.',
after 'him!' in 1. 150; Q om.
150. Save him etc. <F) Q om. Theob. (+some
(
edd.) assigns to Gon.; but 'Alb. desires' this 'only to
obtain his confession and to convict him openly by his
own letter' (J.).
153-4. Shut...stop it (F) Q. 'Stop...stapleit.' Al.
and Muir conflate 'Shut...stopple it'—perh. rightly
(J.D.W.). But see G.I.D. ed. 1949, p. 43.
154. this paper i.e. her letter to Edmund (4. 6.
259 £.).Hold=Wait.
S.D. (i) (J.D.W.=Cap.conj.)F,£)om.Cap.explains
'Hold, sir' as addressed to Edg., in reiteration of'Save
him' (1.150), lest he should dispatch Edm. (now on the
ground) before Alb. had questioned him on the letter.
Most edd. make Alb. address it to Edm. as he hands the
letter to him. This accords with a S.D.' Gives the letter