Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 4.djvu/106

 82 NOTES AND QUERIES. [io» s. iv. JULY 29, i9os. to prosy sense, and so do another, on p 197 of the same tract, and a couple more later—one in ' Mourning Garment' (ix. 185), 1590, and this closing one in 'Farewell to Follie ' (ix. 299), 1591: " Unhappy Ninus, and therefore unhappy because a king and subject to sensuality." Is this idiom an Itahanated one 1 4. " Perceiving Gostino to crave rest, and that his drowsie eyes chymed for sleepe," 'Mamillia' (ii. 85). "Seeing they were wearie, and that sleepe chimed on to rest, •MenaPhon'(vi. 53), 1589. A poetical echo of "my belly rings noon," which Greene phrases " By the chimes in his stomacke it was time to fall untomeate," ' A Groats worth of Wit' (xii. 133), 1592. 5 "Thy welfare hanges in the wil of another man, and doost both live and love, so that conclude with thy selfe, Phancles must be he," ' Mamillia' (ii. 90), 1583. "Whom she did entirely both love and like, ibid., p 269 " Hee was liked and loved of all the cheefe Peeres of the Realme," xii. 27 (written circa 1589); and common in the intervening pieces. There are many similar jingles, founded all, perhaps, on the old "living and looking"(="alive and kicking"), which is at least as old as ' Piers the Plowman.' Others are "living, liking, and looking" in Capt. Smith (Arber, 518), &c. Greene has this alliterative trick always handy. 6. " lleport is plumed with Time s feathers, and En vie oftentimes soundeth Fame's trum- pet," 'Pandosto' (iv. 249), 1588. "See how Fortune is plumed with Time's feathers, and how she can minister strange causes to breede strange effects," ibid. (274). "Craftie Cupid, having his wings plumede with times Fethers," ' Planetomachia (v. 54), 1585; re- peated in 'Perimedes1 (vii. 66). "Momen- tarie affection being plumed with times feathers, falleth with every dewe,' Penelope s Web' (v. 160), 1587. " To give more feathers to the wings of Time" occurs in Sidney s •Arcadia,' book iii.; and later to "imp feathers to Time's wings" is in Massinger three times, in Tomkis's 'Albumazar, and in Beaumont and Fletcher's 'Little French 7 " But she contrariwise being at discovert, noting the comelinesse of Pharicles," &c., ' Mamillia ' (ii. 189). " Left them at discovert to be maimed with the glozing gunshot of their protested perjuries/' ibid. (255). "At discovert," meaning in an uncovered or ex- nosed condition, occurs continuously in Greene It is found in Chaucer and earlier. See Greene again, iv. 31; vii. 66; and in Grosart'a useful Index. 8. "Conjectures that Pasylla was a woman, and therefore to be wonne : if beau- tiful, with prayses : if coie, with praiers," «kc.,' Planetomachia' (v. 56), 1585. " To hope*, why not? shee is a woman, and therfore to be wonne with prayses or promises, for that shee is a woman," ibid. (110). The first passage is repeated in ' Perimedes' (vii. 68)* "The sea called Mare mortuum feedeth no fish, so are there no Cowards suffered to arrive at Paphos : she is but a woman, and therefore to be wonne," ' Orpharion' (xii. 31), 1588 (?). " Argentina is a woman, and there- fore to be wooed, and so to be wonne," ibid., p. 78. The last quotation is very near th6 lines in Shakespeare's ' 1 Henry VI.,' V. ii, 77, and repeated in 'Titus Andronicus,' II. i. 80. Greene is thought to have had a hand in the original draft of ' Henry VI.' Grosart made a feeble effort to assign ' Titus Andro- nicus ' partly to Greene. 9. " Bradamant, living there for a brief space woon such favour in so much that who but Bradamant in all the court of Libia," ' Perimedes ' (vii. 88). " He was made foreman of the shop, and so pleased the gentle- men that who but William talkt on for a good taylor," ' Defence of Conny-catching' (xi. 88). But this tract has not, I think, any- place in Greene's works. Of this more later. This idiom, common later, is euphuistic: "Who now so fortunate as Fidus? who so frolicke ? " (Arber, p. 273.) •" Who now but his violet, who but Mistris Fraunces ? " (Arber, p. 426.) Oliphant has a reference (in full for a wonder) in ' New English,' i. 476, to Ellis's ' Letters,' circa 1530 : " He is his right hand, and who but he?" We may couple other odd usages with this: " If thou sendest him but one line, it will more charme him than al Cyrces inchantments Why, but Dora- lice 1 And with that she sat still as one in a trance, building castles in the aire," 'Arbasto'(iii. 247), 1584. ."Why,but. GwyT doiiius, why does thou thus recklesslie rag$ against reason ?" ' Carde of Fancie' (iv. 67). "What" comes in for maltreatment some- times : "But, Seignior,.P.eratio, quoth the olde Countesse, what doe you thinke everie one proud that weareth costly apparel 1 ?" ' Farewell to Follie' (ix. 254). " Why but,? coupled with "Yea" to follow, is freely used by John Florio in his preface to Montaigna, as " Why but Learning be wrapt in a learned mantle. Yea but to be unwrapt by a learned nurse," &c., ad nauseam. Florio aped ear phuism very clumsily. Without alliteration it could not be made a going concern-*- showing to what straits those who adopted it were confined.