This play illustrates the wonderfully philosophic impartiality of Shakspeare's politics. His own country's history furnished him with no matter, but what was too recent to be devoted to patriotism. Besides, he knew that the instruction of ancient history would seem more dispassionate. In Coriolanus and Julius Caesar, you see Shakspeare's good-natured laugh at mobs. Compare this with Sir Thomas Brown's aristocracy of spirit. Act i. sc. 1. Coriolanus' speech:-- He that depends Upon your favours, swims with fins of lead, And hews down oaks with rushes. Hang ye! Trust ye? I suspect that Shakspeare wrote it transposed; Trust ye? Hang ye! Ib. sc. 10. Speech of Aufidius:-- Mine emulation Hath not that honor in't, it had; for where I thought to crush him in an equal force, True sword to sword; I'll potch at him some way, Or wrath, or craft may get him.--My valor (poison'd With only suffering stain by him) for him Shall fly out of itself: not sleep, nor sanctuary, Being naked, sick, nor fane, nor capitol, The prayers of priests, nor times of sacrifices, Embankments all of fury, shall lift up Their rotten privilege and custom 'gainst My hate to Marcius. I have such deep faith in Shakspeare's heart-lore, that I take for granted that this is in nature, and not as a mere anomaly; although I cannot in myself discover any germ of possible feeling, which could wax and unfold itself into such sentiment as this. However, I perceive that in this speech is meant to be contained a prevention of shock at the after-change in Aufidius' character. Act ii. sc, 1. Speech of Menenius:-- The most sovereign prescription in _Galen_, &c. Was it without, or in contempt of, historical information that Shakspeare made the contemporaries of Coriolanus quote Cato and Galen? I cannot decide to my own satisfaction. Ib. sc. 3. Speech of Coriolanus:-- Why in this wolvish gown should I stand here-- That the gown of the candidate was of whitened wool, we know. Does 'wolvish' or 'woolvish' mean 'made of wool?' If it means 'wolfish,' what is the sense? Act iv. sc. 7. Speech of Aufidius:-- All places yield to him ere he sits down, &c. I have always thought this in itself so beautiful speech, the least explicable from the mood and full intention of the speaker, of any in the whole works of Shakspeare. I cherish the hope that I am mistaken, and that, becoming wiser, I shall discover some profound excellence in that, in which I now appear to detect an imperfection. JULIUS CÆSAR. Act I. sc. 1. 'Mar.' What meanest _thou_ by that? Mend me, thou saucy fellow! The speeches of Flavius and Marullus are in blank verse. Wherever regular metre can be rendered truly imitative of character, passion, or personal rank, Shakspeare seldom, if ever, neglects it. Hence this line should be read:-- What mean'st by that? mend me, thou saucy fellow!