—­sure her offence Must be of such unnatural degree, That monsters it; or you for vouch’d affection Fall into taint.

Her offence must be prodigious, or you must fal1 into reproach for having vouched affection which you did not feel.  If the reading of the folio be preferred, we may with a very slight change produce the same sense: 

—­sure her offence Must be of such unnatural degree, That monsters it, or your fore-vouch’d affection Falls into taint.—­

That is, falls into reproach or censure.  But there is another possible sense. Or signifies before, and or ever is before ever; the meaning in the folio may therefore be, Sure her crime must be monstrous before your affection can be affected with hatred.  Let the reader determine.—­As I am not much a friend to conjectural emendation, I should prefer the latter sense, which requires no change of reading.

I.i.243 (325,3) from the intire point] Intire, for right, true.  WARB.] Rather, single, unmixed with other considerations.

I.i.264 (326,5) Thou losest here, better where to find] Here and where have the power of nouns.  Thou losest this residence to find a better residence in another place.

I.i.282 (326,6) And well are worth the want that you have wanted] [This I take to be the poet’s meaning, stript of the jingle which makes it dark:  “You well deserve to meet with that want of love from your husband, which you have professed to want for our father.”  THEOBALD.] [W:  have vaunted] I think the common reading very suitable to the manner of our author, and well enough explained by Theobald.

I.i.283 (327,7) plaited cunning] i.e. complicated, involved cunning. (1773)

I.ii.3 (328,2) Stand in the plague of custom] The word plague is in all the copies; I can scarcely think it right, nor can I yet reconcile myself to the emendation proposed, though I have nothing better to offer [Warburton had proposed plage].

I.ii.21 (330,7) Shall be the legitimate] [Hanmer:  toe th’] Hanmer’s emendation will appear very plausible to him that shall consult the original reading.  Butter’s quarto reads,

  —­Edmund the base
  Shall tooth’ legitimate.—­

The folio,

  —­Edmund the base
  Shall to th’ legitimate.—­

Hanmer, therefore, could hardly be charged with coining a word, though his explanation may be doubted.  To toe him, is perhaps to kick him out, a phrase yet in vulgar use; or, to toe, may be literally to supplant.  The word be has no authority.

I.ii.24 (331,1) subscrib’d his power!] To subscribe, is, to transfer by signing or subscribing a writing of testimony.  We now use the term, He subscribed forty pounds to the new building.