and concerned with the development of a character under certain well known astrological conditions, This habit of working with Zodiacal types appeared to grow as years went on. There is a beautiful instance of it in one of his later plays. In the 2nd. Scene of the 1st. Act of “Twelfth Night” Sir Toby says, in reply to Andrew's expressed yearning to “set about some revels;”—
| “What else shall we do? Were we not born under Taurus? | |
| Sir And. | Taurus? That’s sides and heart. |
| Sir Toby. | No, sir, it’s legs and thighs.” |
To the uninformed reader such words are meaningless. Singer explains them by saying that the errors were probably intentional; but Andrew’s clearly was not, while Toby’s as surely was; the truth being that Shakespeare, himself a Taurus man, was treating at the time the very best of his Taurian characters (Falstaff and Bottom not forgotten); and Toby was not the man to let his friend Capricorn’s misstatement pass without rallying him with another. Why he chose that particular one is apparent from the context. Toby had the characteristic Taurian interest in physique, legs had special fascination for him (witness in a later scene, his remarks on these essentials in the personality of Viola); Andrew’s shanks in particular took his fancy:—
“Aye” says Andrew succumbing to the flattery, “‘tis strong and it does indifferent well in a flame coloured stock.”
“What is thy excellence in a galliard, knight?” asks Toby, the exquisite, the inimitable,
“Faith” says the victim, “I can cut a caper.” And one can hear the Taurian chuckle and the basso comment, sotto voce:—“And I can cut the mutton to’t.“In the letter to Malvolio, in the composition of which Toby must have had a hand, (Act 2, Sc. 5) we have the words:—
“In my stars I am above thee;
but be not afraid of greatness.”
where the reference clearly is to Jupiter near Midheaven in the tenth or eleventh “house” as opposed to Jupiter beneath the earth at time of birth. This is shown by the subsequent—
