Page:Shakespeare and Music.djvu/187

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STAGE DIRECTIONS
173

ancient 'march of this our English nation, so famous in all the honourable achievements and glorious wars of this our kingdome in forraigne parts [being by the approbation of strangers themselves confest and acknowledged the best of all marches].' The warrant goes on to say that this ancient war march of England was, through the negligence and carelessness of drummers, and by long discontinuance, so altered and changed from the ancient gravitie and majestie thereof, as it was in danger utterly to have bene lost and forgotten.' It appears that 'our late deare brother prince Henry' had taken steps to have the old march restored, at Greenwich, in 1610; 'In confirmation whereof' the warrant orders all English or Welsh drummers to 'observe the same,' whether at home or abroad, 'without any addition or alteration whatever.' 'Given at our palace of Westminster, the seventh day of February, in the seventh yeare of our raigne, of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland.'

Then follows the march, expressed both in musical notes and onomatopoetic words. It consists of a Voluntary, and then seven lines of 'The March,' each of which ends with a 'pause.' The first line is given thus—Pou tou Pou tou
poung
. The next three