The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1860-10-03
Err FALLS PIERCE COUNTY, WISCONSIN, WEDNESDAY, OCl

nounces, zone of the greatest men ia the
roalm.'
In this brief synopsis no mention has
been mad, of the adventures of the 'Mer-
ry Wives of Windsor as the play did
not enter into Shakspeare's original
scheme of Falstafrs life, and the incidents
may be supposed to Lave occurred at any
time between the beginning OF the first
part Of Henry w. and the end of the
second part.
At the date of Pistols announcement
in the garden of Shadows house, Clos
!. tershre, of the accession Of prince Hal to
the throne, Falstaff must be bard upon
seventy years of age, or as near that as
ten years added toinclining to tLreescore'
may be supposed to make; for nearly SO
much time has elapsed since first he ap-
peared upon the scene with his lninions
of the moon
BE his years what they may, his wis
dom is not yet ripe, for his egregrious
vanity readily persuades him that he
is now really a power in the king
dom:
Master Robert Shallow, choose what office
thou wilt in the land, It's thine. Pistol, l
will double charge thee with dignities
know the young king is sick
for me- the laws of Eng
land are at my commandment
This is his elimination: henceforth he
goes down hill. His oyorweeniug con-
coit sustains him, indeed, under the pub
lie rebuff of the now king; but, once as
sured of the little hope there is in that
quarter, lie eyinces no strength of char
acter to cope with the disappointment,
decaying broken spirited. He appears
no more before us; bat the next we hear
of him is in the play Henry W aiready
like to die.
First comes the boy, his page, and init
mates to 'nlino host Pistol and Mrs.
Quickly, now the ancient's wife, that his
IN ,ster is very sick and would to bed
Faith, he's very ill., Where
at Mrs. Quickly goes out. but shortly
re-onters to Bardolph, Nym and Pts
toll:
Mrs. Q,cicIly'-As ever you came of wo-
men. come in quickly to Sir John. All, poor
heart he is so shalted of a burning quotidIan
tortian, that it is most lamentable to behold.
Sweet men, come to him.
'Ngm-The king hath run bad humors
on the knight, that's the even of it.
.Pizsol-Nym, thou hast spoke the right ;
His heart is fracteI and corrobolate,'
And now we are to have the end Of
him. Up to this time, from first to last,
there has not been attributed to him the
least tendency toward anything noble,
generous, afectionate, or pure. But, be-
hold We! in the catholic tenderness OF
his universal genius, or in the kindness OF
his heart for the creation ofhis own brain,
Shakespeare has thrown upon this unlov-
ed character single ray of genial light
before he dismissess him into the shadow
of darkness forever.
Mrs. Quickly is describing to til trio
of varlcts, Pistol, Nym and Bardolph,
the manner of their former patrons death
and we have often thought that hero is
one Of the most exquisite touches of hui
man nature to be found in the masters
! works: n
"a parted even Just between twelve aud one,
/ cen at tbr ming O. the tide for after saw him
/ tumble with the sheets, and play with the
| flowers, and smile upon his fingers ends, /
| know there was but one way for his nose was
! as sharp as a pen, and q babbled of green
fields, How. now, Sir, John quoth :: what
man, be of good cheer. So a cried out, God,
| God. God three or four times. Now ], to
comfort him, bid him, a should not think 81
God l hoped, there was no need to trouble
himself with such thoughts yet. SO, "a bade
me lay more clothes on his feet, | put my hand
into the bed, and felt them, and they were SO
cold as any stone then felt to his knees. and
so upward and upward, and all was cold as
any stone.
lind "a 5qbBlcd Of green fields
What stroke is here! " hat histo-
~ it suggests What contrast between
the first scenes and the last of this life
drama Poor, old, disappointed, broken
down, dying. man of-the world; of the
earth, earthly gross, corrupted; stained
with all the sins of an animal life; no re-
collections of good done throughout the
course of long career to comfort him in
that tremendous hour-at last, at last
when the wine cheers no longer the slow
blood in the choking veins; when the
chink of the red gold and the song of the
painted siren cannot be heard when the
glairy eyes disfunctioned roll when the
palate tastes no more. and the lunguid
hand cannot grasp, nor lift itself; wher
y