SHAKESPEARE OJN" SYPHILIS. Neakly all authorities agree that
syphilis
was
unknown in
till the end of the fifteenth century ; but whatever its
Europe origin may
have been from that date it
spread rapidly,
and
by
the
middle of the sixteenth century was a well-known complaint. Shakespeare, in Timon of Athens, has given a description of this disease
singularly Athens, according
this must
not
be no doubt it
writings,
and '
Timon's
cave
Timon to
fidelity. Now,
Timon of
Malone was written in 1610; and
though absolutely certain, there can belongs to the later period of Shakespeare's it undoubtedly was first published in the folio to
be considered as
edition of 1623. and his two
remarkable for its
The passage is in that
scene
where Alcibiades
lady friends,' Phrynia and Timandria, pay a visit to ladies importune on the seashore, and the two them
give
of his
some
gold.
ATHENS, ACT IV. SCENE III. Phrynia and Timandria.?Give us some gold, good Timon: hast thou more ? TIMON OF
Timon.?Enough
to make
And to make whores
a
a
whore forswear her trade, Hold up, you sluts,
bawd.
Tour aprons mountant: you are not oathable,? I know you'll swear, terribly swear,
Although
Into strong shudders and to heavenly agues, The immortal gods that hear you,?spare your
oaths,
I'll trust to your conditions: be whores still ; And ho whose pious breath seeks to convert you, Be strong in whore, allure him, burn him up ; Let your close fire predominate his smoke, And be no turncoats : yet may your pains, sis
months,
Be quite contrary : and thatch your poor thin roofs With burdens of the dead;?some that were hang'd, No matter Paint till
:?wear
them, betray with them: whore still;
horse may mire upon your face : A pox of wrinkles ! Phrynia and Timandria.?Well, more gold:?what then?? a
Believe't, that we'll do anything Timon.?Consumptions sow
for gold.
In hollow bones of man ; strike their sharp shins, And mar men's spurring. Crack the lawyer's voice, That he may never more false title plead, Nor sound his quillets shrilly; hoar the flamen That scolds
against
the
quality
of flesh,
And not believes himself: down with the nose,
THE INDIAN MEDICAL GAZETTE.
326 Down with it flat; take the
bridge quite
away
foresee, Smells from the general weal: make curl'd-pate ruffians bald; Of
him, that
his
particular
to
And let the unscarr'd braggarts of the war Derive some pain from you: plague all; That your activity may defeat and quell The source of all erection:?There's more gold Do you damn others, and let this damn jou, And ditches grave you all! It must be conceded that this is
magnificent piece of abuse, It, however, makes scolding manifest how thoroughly well acquainted Shakespeare was with syphilis when he has given a description of its constitutional effects that Bicord could hardly have surpassed. Shakespeare's field of clinical observation was no doubt chiefly amongst those who frequent the precincts of theatres. But the disease must have been much more marked and conspicuous in England in those days than it is now, for though Shakespeare as an accurate observer, has never even been approached?he has noted with equal care every phase of human life from the "mewling and puking infant" down to "second childishness and mere oblivion," and has written down for us the outward a moist eye, a dry hand, a appearance of old age, viz. yellow cheek, a white beard, a decreasing leg, an increasing belly. Is not your voice broken ? Your wind short ? Your Your wit single?" and has depicted the dying chin double? man with "his nose as sharp as a pen," "fumbling with the sheets" and babbling of green fields,"?yet it would be clearly impossible now-a-days for any one, however acute, from observation and inspection alone, to supply so complete a list of syphilitic sequelse. This greater conspieu ousness of the disease then may be accounted for by the greater virulence with which this complaint alsvays attacks a people to .which it is new, and also by the interest taken by all classes in a disease of comparatively recent origin,?an invariably favourite topic of and
leaves modern
a
far behind.
"
"
conversation?for instance cholera at home. in those
It appears also
early days was not monopolized by one class, and the fact that Shakespeare particularly me ntions the lawyer and the flamen in counectiou with it, shows how selfsacrificing and public-spirited in spreading new social movements were even then the pulpit and the bar.
that
syphilis
[December 1, 1877.
syphilis
was
unknown in
till the end of the fifteenth century ; but whatever its
Europe origin may
have been from that date it
spread rapidly,
and
by
the
middle of the sixteenth century was a well-known complaint. Shakespeare, in Timon of Athens, has given a description of this disease
singularly Athens, according
this must
not
be no doubt it
writings,
and '
Timon's
cave
Timon to
fidelity. Now,
Timon of
Malone was written in 1610; and
though absolutely certain, there can belongs to the later period of Shakespeare's it undoubtedly was first published in the folio to
be considered as
edition of 1623. and his two
remarkable for its
The passage is in that
scene
where Alcibiades
lady friends,' Phrynia and Timandria, pay a visit to ladies importune on the seashore, and the two them
give
of his
some
gold.
ATHENS, ACT IV. SCENE III. Phrynia and Timandria.?Give us some gold, good Timon: hast thou more ? TIMON OF
Timon.?Enough
to make
And to make whores
a
a
whore forswear her trade, Hold up, you sluts,
bawd.
Tour aprons mountant: you are not oathable,? I know you'll swear, terribly swear,
Although
Into strong shudders and to heavenly agues, The immortal gods that hear you,?spare your
oaths,
I'll trust to your conditions: be whores still ; And ho whose pious breath seeks to convert you, Be strong in whore, allure him, burn him up ; Let your close fire predominate his smoke, And be no turncoats : yet may your pains, sis
months,
Be quite contrary : and thatch your poor thin roofs With burdens of the dead;?some that were hang'd, No matter Paint till
:?wear
them, betray with them: whore still;
horse may mire upon your face : A pox of wrinkles ! Phrynia and Timandria.?Well, more gold:?what then?? a
Believe't, that we'll do anything Timon.?Consumptions sow
for gold.
In hollow bones of man ; strike their sharp shins, And mar men's spurring. Crack the lawyer's voice, That he may never more false title plead, Nor sound his quillets shrilly; hoar the flamen That scolds
against
the
quality
of flesh,
And not believes himself: down with the nose,
THE INDIAN MEDICAL GAZETTE.
326 Down with it flat; take the
bridge quite
away
foresee, Smells from the general weal: make curl'd-pate ruffians bald; Of
him, that
his
particular
to
And let the unscarr'd braggarts of the war Derive some pain from you: plague all; That your activity may defeat and quell The source of all erection:?There's more gold Do you damn others, and let this damn jou, And ditches grave you all! It must be conceded that this is
magnificent piece of abuse, It, however, makes scolding manifest how thoroughly well acquainted Shakespeare was with syphilis when he has given a description of its constitutional effects that Bicord could hardly have surpassed. Shakespeare's field of clinical observation was no doubt chiefly amongst those who frequent the precincts of theatres. But the disease must have been much more marked and conspicuous in England in those days than it is now, for though Shakespeare as an accurate observer, has never even been approached?he has noted with equal care every phase of human life from the "mewling and puking infant" down to "second childishness and mere oblivion," and has written down for us the outward a moist eye, a dry hand, a appearance of old age, viz. yellow cheek, a white beard, a decreasing leg, an increasing belly. Is not your voice broken ? Your wind short ? Your Your wit single?" and has depicted the dying chin double? man with "his nose as sharp as a pen," "fumbling with the sheets" and babbling of green fields,"?yet it would be clearly impossible now-a-days for any one, however acute, from observation and inspection alone, to supply so complete a list of syphilitic sequelse. This greater conspieu ousness of the disease then may be accounted for by the greater virulence with which this complaint alsvays attacks a people to .which it is new, and also by the interest taken by all classes in a disease of comparatively recent origin,?an invariably favourite topic of and
leaves modern
a
far behind.
"
"
conversation?for instance cholera at home. in those
It appears also
early days was not monopolized by one class, and the fact that Shakespeare particularly me ntions the lawyer and the flamen in counectiou with it, shows how selfsacrificing and public-spirited in spreading new social movements were even then the pulpit and the bar.
that
syphilis
[December 1, 1877.
