Note XVIII

IV. 6. 196-200. The first Quarto has in this passage:

'... water-pottes, I and laying Autumnes dust.

Gent. Good Sir.

Lear. I will dye brauely like a Bridegroome. What, I will bee
iouiall: Come, come, I am a King my masters, know you that?'

The second Quarto omits 'Gent. Good Sir.'

The first Folio has:

'To vse his eyes for Garden water-pots. I wil die brauely,
Like a smugge Bridegroome. What? I will be Iouiall:
Come, come, I am a King, Masters, know you that?'

The second and following Folios put a full stop at 'King.'

Pope combines the readings of the Folios and second Quarto thus:

'To use his eyes for garden-water-pots,
And laying autumn's dust. I will die bravely,
Like a smug bridegroom. What? I will be jovial:
Come, come, I am a King. My masters know you that?'

He is followed by Theobald, Hanmer, Warburton and Johnson.

Capell altered the last line thus:

'Come, come;
I am a king, my masters; Know you that?'

The arrangement adopted in our text is that which Steevens gave in his edition of 1778. Jennens, from whom Steevens borrowed as usual without acknowledgement, had given in 1770 the same arrangement, omitting the word 'smug.' In his edition of 1793 Steevens reads 'Ay and for laying autumn's dust,' making 'Ay ... sir' one line.

Mr Collier prints 'I will die bravely;' in a line by itself, adopting in the former line the arrangement of Steevens, and in what follows that of the Folios. Keightley reads 'Ay, and laying autumn's dust ... bravely' as one line.

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