The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-01-07
with the most calling and contenptuous

| Airs not offence mat indiscretion nnds
And uOtasc terms So.
At this the poor old KING prayed to
Heaven for patience.
Rcgan paid no attention to thnt, but
cOOily STUCK to her point. she udviscd
hun 10 comply with GOncrils terms. strike
of half his Knights, and conclude his
month. After that he could come to hor.
At present his visit would not tie con-
| veDent.
Lear refused, holly.
"As you please" said Goncrl, coldly.
| Rcgan persisted, and sud thai, in fact,
| nifty followers were too many III another
persons house. How could so many peo-
pie, under two commands. hold antyy
Then GoDeiil put IN her word. why
could ho not be attended OH by their SER
wants?
"To be sure" said Regain; "then, IL
they were disicsppciful, we could control
them. At all evcnis,' said she, when you
come to me, bring no more than twenty
| Ave."
Ilo asked her IL that was her last word.
| She said IL was. Then the poor old KING
said Goncrl was better than she was. Yes,
he would 70 back with Goneril, and DIS
miss half his rciinue.
One would have thought these clever,
hearlless women had banded the poor old
man To and fiO enough. But GonerIl had
no mercy. This was her reply. when he
consented to her own propositions:
hat need you avc ' ~ NV GI ,cn Drive.
| To follow IN house whcic Nv &C 50 maty
| nav, commrnd IN tend you2
| Recdn.- What need oasr
So they trumped each others cards and
| coldly drove him wild.
He ragged aud stOrmcd mt them unheed-
ed. He wcpt with agony unhcudcd lie
left them bO.h. and went forth INTO the
stormy night u hOuseless king 10 Danish I'd
father.
Crushed vanity is hard TO bear. Wound
ed affection is hard to bear. Under the
double agony the poor old King lost his
mud N.nnl.al,4l nDntIf tina ( "A m,
like a beggur.
Meantime. his despised curses began to
work, for his wicked daughters prepared
their own chastiscment, by their own
crimes; and here the poet has well shown
that the hearts cold 10 divine affection
could he hot with Illicit love Us well rs
spurred nv greed.
But now II was reported in Franco how
the old King had been abused. and Queen
Cordclia. indignant. invaded the kingdom
with French army. Her emlssalies round
the poor KING ia miserable condition.,
living IN rags aud sleeping in outhOuses
and stables. She had him laid, all uncOn-
scious. on n far bed i'm her own tent, with
music softly playing. and her own physi-
cian waiting on him. she herself nursel
HIM with deep anxiety Tor his wax KING.
All was changed. She who in his hour
Of pride ANA prosperity had SAID she loved
INN only rs every daughter ought to love
her iather. now ovei lowed with passion-
ate tenderness she took his grey head to
her iiiAl bosom. andbemOanei him. WAS
tins face said she " TO he opposed to the
warning windsy On such II night. tool -
why, would have gwen shelter to my
encmy's dog, though he had bitten me.
And vast thou fam. poor father, to howell
thee with swine ON musty straw p
while she was thus laIneuting over him.
the sOre-trlcd King awOke; but not his
memory. lie thought he had been dead,
and told them they did wrong to take hun
out OF the grave where he rested from his
suiferings. The happy change III his con-
dition brought him no joy at first II did
but confuse anu puzzle nm. lie looked ut
tordelGi, and saw she was Queen: and
tried to kueel to her. But She would not
let him. and knoeled to him Instead, and
begged nm to hold his hand over her and
give her u parents blessing. Seeing so
great II lady mt his feet craving his
blessing. let some light into his distrac ted
mind. and drew from the once fiery old
man sweet piteous words that have made
many an eye wet:
PRAY do not mock me,
am very foolish, fond. oli man
-FOUR score aud upward and 10 deal plainly.
know MT where lods last nisnt DO not laugh az
For. As an a man. | thinx thus lady
cor.-And 80 an am
Then the poor soul, seeing her weep, babe
her not cry, ana offered t. drink poison IL
she chOst; for he SAID she had Tar more
reason To hare Inn than her sisters had.
But shc soon convinced him OF her love,
anu tom that time they never parted.
| ~ tsls very TINE GOnrril aud Regain
died hv poison and suicide ana - pad the
forfeit OF their crimes.
Blu; All this was on the eve OF battle
between the French and English forces,
and IA that battle, depiOTuble to relate,
Curdc.ia WAS SLAIN, AMI Lear mustered
stron-t IN to Kill her assassin ana then tho
last churd Of IA, sure-trlcd heart gave way,
and n died by the side OF ms loved dlugn-
ter. who rad pr1fessed so little. yet had
done SO much. and had died tor him.
THIS Is the heart OF Shakespeare story.
There Is an inferior hand visible IN pdI Is
II il: il Is clO-ged with useless chIrlc-
tiers and supcriluous atrocities, AMI
the death OF tordelia j. revolving
and sacrifice OF the narrative TO stage
pOncy. But all that pertains To King Lear
rs exquisite, and 80 mastery that the tale
has cXunguI.hed the legend. Historically
incorrect, II Is true IL ar;, all but the ssicri-
ncc OF Con della, winch, coupled with the
other deaths. turns the theatre INTO Il
shInD.e-, and above all disturbs the true
motive OF the tale. Wnen the reader finds
The sorc-trlci old man ing on II SOFT
couch tcudcd b Queen Cordclia, and when
at last he knows her, aud they mingle their
tears ana their lOye. the reader sees that
tins IL the Tightening before death, aud the
mad king mas recovered ms wits TO be Just
Ia his one chiid. and then 10 fall asleep al
ter lies hiiui fever Against such II
tale 50 tod. no previous legend can light
Under such "A spell you can neither con-
celve nor believe that Lear recovered his
Kingdom. ana carOussd again NJ the head
of ms kuignis, and toasted ms one chiln.
Youth may recover any wound: but old
axe aud royal vanity crushed aud tIunpled
on, am pniernal love struck To the heart
hN the serptnt's tooth of iillul ingratiiude,
what should tney do Duf rage and DIE!
Yet there l. u legend, almost IL Old rs
Lear, OF father whom his child en-
treated rs Gonerl aud Rogan treated Lear;
bul he uttered ana survived, aud his heart
turned bitter instead of breaking.
OF tins prose Lear the story il all over
Europe, and, like most oil stories, told
vllely. To that, however, there happens
to be one exception. and tho readers Of
this collection shall have the benefit OF II.
In Il certain part of Ireland, II long time
ago. lived IL wealthy old farmer, whose
name was Brian Iuafe. HIS three sons
Gu!llaum, Snanus, and ''arret, worked on
the farm. The old man had II great niIec-
ton tor them all and, finding himself grow
unit Tor work, he resolved TO hand his
farm over to them and SIT quiet by tue
hrc,ide. But rs that WAS not u thin., To be
done lightly, he thought he would just put
Them 10 their trial. lie would first take
the measure of their intelligence, aud then
OF Their affection.
Proceeding in this order he gave them
a. A.