SCENE I.--1. _Carry coals._ "Endure affronts" (Johnson). According to

Nares, the phrase got this meaning from the fact that the carriers of wood and coals were esteemed the very lowest of menials. Cf. _Hen. V._ iii. 2. 49, where there is a play upon the expression. Steevens quotes Nash, _Have With You_, etc.: "We will bear no coles, I warrant you;" Marston, _Antonio and Mellida_, part ii.: "He has had wrongs; and if I were he I would bear no coles," etc. Dyce cites Cotgrave, _Fr. Dict._: "_Il a du feu en la teste_. Hee is very chollericke, furious, or couragious; he will carrie no coales." He might have added from Sherwood's English-French supplement to Cotgrave (ed. 1632): "That will carrie no coales, _Brave_."

3. _Colliers._ The preceding note explains how _colliers_ came to be a term of abuse. The _New Eng. Dict._ adds that it may have been due to "the evil repute of the collier for cheating." Steevens compares _T.N._ iii. 4. 130: "hang him, foul collier!"

4. _Choler._ For the play upon the word, cf. Jonson, _Every Man in his Humour_, iii. 2:--

"_Cash._ Why, how now, Cob? what moves thee to this cholar, ha?

_Cob._ Collar, master Thomas? I scorn your collar, I sir; I am none of your cart-horse, though I carry and draw water."

15. _Take the wall._ Claim the right of passing next the wall when meeting a person on the street; a right valued in old-fashioned streets with narrow sidewalks or none at all. To _give the wall_ was an act of courtesy; to _take the wall_ might be an insult.

17. _The weakest goes to the wall._ A familiar proverb.

28. _Here comes two_, etc. Halliwell-Phillipps remarks that the partisans of the Montagues wore a token in their hats to distinguish them from the Capulets; hence throughout the play they are known at a distance. Cf. Gascoigne, _Devise of a Masque, written for Viscount Montacute_, 1575:--

"And for a further proofe, he shewed in hys hat Thys token which the _Mountacutes_ did beare alwaies, for that They covet to be knowne from _Capels_, where they pass, For ancient grutch whych long ago 'tweene these two houses was."

39. _I will bite my thumb at them._ An insult explained by Cotgrave, _Fr. Dict._ (ed. 1632): "_Nique, faire la nique_, to threaten or defie, by putting the thumbe naile into the mouth, and with a ierke (from th' upper teeth) make it to knocke."

44. _Of our side._ On our side (_on = of_, as often).

55. _Here comes one_, etc. "Gregory may mean Tybalt, who enters directly after Benvolio, but on a different part of the stage. The eyes of the servant may be directed the way he sees Tybalt coming, and in the mean time Benvolio enters on the opposite side" (Steevens).

60. _Swashing blow._ A dashing or smashing blow (Schmidt). Cf. Jonson, _Staple of News_, v. 1: "I do confess a swashing blow." Cf. also _swash_ = bully, bluster; as in _A.Y.L._ i. 3. 122: "I'll have a martial and a swashing outside."

63. _Art thou drawn?_ Cf. _Temp._ ii. 1. 308: "Why are you drawn?" _Heartless_ = cowardly, spiritless; as in _R. of L._ 471, 1392.

69. _Have at thee._ Cf. iv. 5. 119 below; also _C. of E._ iii. 1. 51, etc.

70. _Clubs._ The cry of _Clubs_! in a street affray is of English origin, as the _bite my thumb_ is of Italian. It was the rallying-cry of the London apprentices. Cf. _Hen. VIII._ v. 4. 53, _A.Y.L._ v. 2. 44, etc. _Bills_ were the pikes or halberds formerly carried by the English infantry and afterwards by watchmen. The _partisan_ was "a sharp two-edged sword placed on the summit of a staff for the defence of foot-soldiers against cavalry" (Fairholt). Cf. _Ham._ i. 1. 140: "Shall I strike at it with my partisan?"

71. _Enter_ CAPULET _in his gown_. Cf. _Ham._ (quarto) iii. 4. 61: "_Enter the ghost in his night gowne_;" that is, his dressing-gown. See also _Macb._ ii. 2. 70: "Get on your nightgown, lest occasion call us And show us to be watchers;" and _Id._ v. 1. 5: "I have seen her rise from her bed, throw her nightgown upon her," etc. It is early morning, and Capulet comes out before he is dressed.

72. _Long sword._ The weapon used in active warfare; a lighter and shorter one being worn for ornament (see _A.W._ ii. 1. 32: "no sword worn But one to dance with"). Cf. _M.W._ ii. 1. 236: "with my long sword I would have made you four tall fellows skip like rats."

73. _A crutch, a crutch!_ The lady's sneer at her aged husband. For her own age, see on i. 3. 51 below.

75. _In spite._ In scornful defiance. Cf. 3 _Hen. VI._ i. 3. 158, _Cymb._ iv. 1. 16, etc.

79. _Neighbour-stained._ Because used in civil strife.

84. _Mistemper'd._ Tempered to an ill end (Schmidt). Steevens explains it as = angry. The word occurs again in _K. John_, v. 1. 12: "This inundation of mistemper'd humour."

85. _Moved._ That is, "mov'd to wrath" (_T.A._ i. 1. 419). Cf. _L. L. L._ v. 2. 694, _J.C._ iv. 3. 58, etc.

89. _Ancient._ Not of necessity old in years, but long settled there and accustomed to peace and order (Delius).

90. _Grave beseeming_. Grave and becoming. Cf. _Ham._ iv. 7. 79:--

"for youth no less becomes The light and careless livery that it wears, Than settled age his sables and his weeds, Importing health and graveness."

92. _Canker'd with peace_, etc. _Canker'd_ (= corroded) is applied literally to the partisans long disused, and figuratively to their owners. Cf. _K. John_, ii. 1. 194: "A canker'd grandam's will."

99. _Freetown._ S. takes the name from Brooke's poem. It translates the _Villa Franca_ of the Italian story.

101. S. uses _set abroach_ only in a bad sense. Cf. 2 _Hen. IV._ iv. 2. 14: "Alack, what mischiefs might be set abroach;" and _Rich. III._ i. 3. 325: "The secret mischiefs that I set abroach."

109. _Nothing hurt withal._ Nowise harmed by it. _Who_ = which; as often.

110. _While we_, etc. This line, with the change of _we_ to _they_, is found in the 1st quarto in iii. 1, where Benvolio describes the brawl in which Mercutio and Tybalt are slain (Daniel).

113. _Saw you him to-day?_ This use of the past tense is not allowable now, but was common in Elizabethan English. Cf. _Cymb._ iv. 2. 66: "I saw him not these many years," etc.

115. _The worshipp'd sun._ Cf. iii. 2. 25 below: "And pay no worship to the garish sun." See also _Lear_, i. 1. 111: "the sacred radiance of the sun;" and _Cymb._ iv. 4. 41: "the holy sun." It is remarkable that no German commentator has tried to make S. a Parsee.

116. _Forth._ Cf. _M.N.D._ i. 1. 164: "Steal forth thy father's house," etc.

118. _Sycamore._ According to Beisly and Ellacombe, the _Acer pseudo-platanus_, which grows wild in Italy. It had been introduced into England before the time of S. He mentions it also in _L. L. L._ v. 2. 89 and _Oth._ iv. 3. 41.

119. _Rooteth._ Cf. _W.T._ i. 1. 25: "there rooted betwixt them such an affection," etc.

121. _Ware._ Aware; but not to be printed as a contraction of that word. Cf. ii. 2. 103 below.

123. _Affections._ Feelings, inclinations. Cf. _Ham._ iii. 1. 170: "Love! his affections do not that way tend," etc.

124. _Which then_, etc. "The plain meaning seems to be that Benvolio, like Romeo, was indisposed for society, and sought to be most where most people were not to be found, being one too many, even when by himself" (Collier). Some editors follow Pope in reading (from 1st quarto) "That most are busied when they're most alone."

127. _Who._ Him who; the antecedent omitted, as often when it is easily supplied.

131. _All so soon. All_ is often used in this "intensive" way.

134. _Heavy._ S. is fond of playing on _heavy_ and _light._ Cf. _R. of L._ 1574, _T.G. of V._ i. 2. 84, _M. of V._ v. 1. 130, etc.

142. _Importun'd._ Accented on the second syllable, as regularly in S.

148. _With._ By; as often of the agent or cause.

150. _Sun._ The early eds. all have "same." The emendation is due to Theobald and is almost universally adopted.

156. _To hear._ _As_ to hear; a common ellipsis.

157. _Is the day so young?_ Is it not yet noon? _Good morrow_ or _good day_ was considered proper only before noon, after which _good den_ was the usual salutation. Cf. i. 2. 57 below.

158. _New._ Often used by S. in this adverbial way = just, lately. Cf. v. 3. 197 below. For _Ay me!_ see on ii. 1. 10.

166. _In his view._ In appearance; opposed to _proof_ = experience. Cf. _Ham._ iii. 2. 179: "What my love is, proof hath made you know," etc.

168. _Alas, that love, whose view_, etc. Alas "that love, though blindfolded, should see how to reach the lover's heart" (Dowden). _View_ here = sight, or eyes.

172. _Here's much_, etc. Romeo means that the fray has much to do with the hate between the rival houses, yet affects him more, inasmuch as his Rosaline is of the Capulet family.

173-178. _O brawling love!_ etc. Cf. iii. 2. 73 fol. below.

187. _Rais'd._ The reading of the 1st quarto, adopted by the majority of editors. The other early eds. have "made."

188. _Purg'd._ That is, from smoke.

191. _A choking gall_, etc. That is, "love kills and keeps alive, is a bane and an antidote" (Dowden).

195. _Some other where._ Cf. _C. of E._ iv. 1. 30: "How if your husband start some other where?"

196. _Sadness._ Seriousness. Cf. _A.W._ iv. 3. 230: "In good sadness, I do not know," etc. So _sadly_ just below = seriously, as in _Much Ado_, ii. 3. 229.

203. _Mark-man._ The 3d and 4th folios have "marks-man." S. uses the word nowhere else.

206. _Dian's wit._ Her way of thinking, her sentiments. S. has many allusions to Diana's chastity, and also to her connection with the moon.

207. _Proof._ Used technically of armour. Cf. _Rich. II._ i. 3. 73: "Add proof unto mine armour with thy prayers;" _Ham._ ii. 2. 512: "Mars's armour forg'd for proof eterne," etc.

209. _The siege_, etc. Cf. _V. and A._ 423:--

"Remove your siege from my unyielding heart; To love's alarm it will not ope the gate."

See also _R. of L._ 221, _A.W._ iii. 7. 18, _Cymb._ iii. 4. 137, etc.

213. _That when she dies_, etc. "_She is rich in beauty_, and _only poor_ in being subject to the lot of humanity, that _her store_, or riches, _can be destroyed by death_, who shall, by the same blow, put an end to beauty" (Johnson); or, as Mason puts it, "she is poor because she leaves no part of her store behind her." _Her store_ may mean "beauty's store," as Dowden suggests. Cf. _V. and A._ 1019: "For he, being dead, with him is beauty slain."

215. _In that sparing makes huge waste._ Cf. _Sonn._ 1. 12: "And, tender churl, makes waste in niggarding."

216. _Starv'd._ The early eds. (except the 4th folio) have "sterv'd," the old form of the word, found in several other passages in the folio (_M. of V._ iv. 1. 138, _Cor._ iv. 2. 51, etc.) and rhyming with _deserve_ in _Cor._ ii. 3. 120. Cf. Spenser, _F.Q._ iv. 1. 4:--

"Untill such time as noble Britomart Released her, that else was like to sterve Through cruell knife that her deare heart did kerve." There it means to die (its original sense), as in _Hen. VII._ v. 3. 132.

226. _To call hers, exquisite._ "That is, to call hers, which is exquisite, the more into my remembrance and contemplation" (Heath); or "to make her unparalleled beauty more the subject of thought and conversation" (Malone). For _question_ = conversation, cf. _A.Y.L._ iii. 4. 39, v. 4. 167, etc. But why may not _question_ repeat the idea of _examine_? Benvolio says, "Examine other beauties;" Romeo replies, in substance, that the result of the examination will only be to prove her beauty superior to theirs and therefore the more extraordinary.

227. _These happy masks._ Steevens took this to refer to "the masks worn by female spectators of the play;" but it is probably = the masks worn nowadays. They are called _happy_ as "being privileged to touch the sweet countenances beneath" (Clarke).

229. _Strucken._ The early eds. have "strucken" or "strooken." S. also uses _struck_ (or _strook_) and _stricken_ as the participle.

231. _Passing._ Often used adverbially but only before adjectives and adverbs. Cf. _L. L. L._ iv. 3. 103, _Much Ado_, ii. 1. 84, etc.

235. _Pay that doctrine._ Give that instruction. Cf. _L. L. L._ iv. 3. 350: "From women's eyes this doctrine I derive;" _A. and C._ v. 2. 31:--

"I hourly learn A doctrine of obedience," etc.