Chaucer hints at the curfing by bell, and candle, Manciple's Tale, 1973, &c. "For clerkes fay we fhallin be fain "For their livelod to fweve and fwinke, "And then right nought us geve again, Neither to eat, ne yet to drink; "Thei move by law, as that thei fain, "Us curfe and dampne to hellis brink "And thus thei puttin us to pain, "With candles queint, and bellis clink" And again 2105—6. M "And Chriftis people proudly curfe "With brode boke, and braying bell." The manner of curfing, the following account is given by Henry Care. (c) "The bishop, clergy, and all the several forts of friars, affemble in the cathedral with the crofs born before them, fupported with ff two wax tapers lighted, and all the rabble of "the city runs to fee this fpiritual tragi-comedy. "A priest all in white mounts the pulpit, and "beginning his fermon, on that text, John vii. “13. Eft blafphemia in caftris, there is blafphemy, or an accursed thing in the camp, told the ❝ftory most lamentably, and befought God, " and the Lady Mary, and every body elfe, that the beretick might be found out: And "having spoken the Prologue, up fteps the "bishop, with a part more tragical, thus. ર " (c) See Weekly Pacquet of Advice from Roma, Vol. 5numb. 21. p. 462 From Fox, fol. 947 Ι "By By the authority of God the father almighty, "and of the bleffed Virgin Mary, and of Saint "Peter and Saint Paul, and all the holy faints, "we excommunicate, and utterly curfe and bann, "and commit and deliver unto the devil of bell, "him or her, (whatever he or she be) that bath, "in spight of God and Saint Peter (whose church "this is) in fpight of our boly father the Pope, "God's vicar bere on earth, and in fpight of the "reverend father in God, John, our diocefan, and "the worshipful canons, mafters, and priests, and "clerks, who ferve God daily in this cathedral "church, fixed up, with wax, fuch curfed and "beretical bills of blafphemy, upon the doors of "this, and other holy churches within this city; "excommunicate plainly be be, fhe, or they ple"nally, and delivered over to the devil, as perpetual malefactors, and fchifmaticks. Accurfed may they be, and given body and foul unto the "devil, as perpetual malefa&tors, and fchifmaticks. 66 Accurfed may they be, and given body and foul "to the devil. Curfed be they, he or she, in ci"ties and towns, in fields, in highways, in paths, "in boufes, and in all other places, ftanding, “lying, or rifing, walking, fleeping, eating, drink J ing, and whatsoever thing they do befides. We "feparate him, or ber from the threshold (of God), and from all the good prayers of the "church; from the participation of the holy mass, from all facraments, chapels, and altars; from boly bread, and boly water, from all the "merits of God's holy priests, and religious men " " and from all their cloysters, from all their par"dons, privileges, grants and immunities: And "we give them over utterly to the power of the "FIEND, and let us quench their fouls (if they "be dead) this night in hell-fire, as this candle is “now quench'd and put out; [and with that he put out one of the candles] and let us pray to "God, (if they be alive) that their eyes may be put out, as this candle light is; [then he put ❝out another candle] and let us pray to God, " and our Lady, and to Saint Peter, and Saint "Paul, and all holy faints, that all the fenfes of "their bodies may fail them, and that they may "have no feeling, as now the light of this candle "is gone; [and fo he put out the third candle] except they, he or she, come openly now, and confefs their blafphemy, and by repentance "[as much as in them fhall lie] make fatisfaltion unto God, our Lady, Saint Peter, and the worshipful company of this cathedral church: "And as this holy cross now falleth down, fo may they, unless they fhew themselves. At which “word, one snatching away the stick, down " comes tumbling holy crofs, and all the people "fhouted, and ftared, and trembled, as if old Nick had been amongst them in proper person.” For the more modern Popish excommunications, confult Mr. Baker's Hiftory of the Inquifition, in 4to. p. 112. A& 3. fc. 5. p. 433. K. John. If the midnight bell Did with his iron tongue, and brazen mouth, Sound Sound one into the drowy race of night.] Bell metal is compofed of five parts pewter, and twenty of copper. The firft ufe of bells in churches, was in the year 604. Vid. Tho. Hearnii Not Gulielmi Nubrigenfis Hiftor. Rerum Anglicanarum, Toms 3. P. 796. And the first tuneable ring of bells in Eng land, were made at the expence of Turketul, chancellor to King Athelstan, who died abbor of Croyland, in the year 973. 2 See Echard's Hiftory of England, Vol. 1. p. 89. And thou poffeffed with a thousand wrongs & Had baked thy blood, and made it heavy-thick, Which elfe runs tickling up and down thy veins.] [Qu. trickling.] Shakespeare wrote this, fome time before the difcovery of the circulation of the blood by the celebrated Dr. Harvey; which was about the year 1628. Had he lived till that time, he would have exprefs'd his meaning with more propriety. The blood is convey'd by the aorta, (the greatest artery, which proceeds from the left ventricle of the heart, and has three valves) all over the body, and is return'd back thro' the veins; in which, at proper diftances, small valves are placed, to hinder its reflux, and to force it forward, at the fame time, into the vena cava, the largest vein of the body; and fo fo call'd, from its great capacity, or hollow fpace. Id. ib. Then in defpight of broad-ey'd, watchful day.] Brooded, Folio 1632. Sc. 6. p. 434. K. Philip. So by a roaring tempeft on the flood, A whole armado of collected fail Is featter'd, and deftroy'd from fellowship.] Shakespeare does not allude to any tempeft that then happened, but to the defeat of the French fleet (prepar'd to invade the dominions of the Earl of Flanders) in the Scheld, by the Earl of Salisbury, brother to King John, in the year 1213. In which 300 fhips, daden with provifions, arms, and other valuable things, were taken; and above 100 more funk, and burnt; and the reft deftroy'd by their own hands, for fear of being taken by the enemy? Which put an end to King Philip's purpose of invading England. Echard's Hiftory of England, Vol. 1. p. 249. A&t 4. fc. 1. P. 440. Executioner. I hope your warrant will bear out the deed. Hubert. Uncleanly fcruples! fear not you, look to't-] Qu. unmanly fcruples? Sc. ib. p. 441. Arthur. |