‘My Lady’s a Catayan, we are politicians, Maluolios a Peg-a-ramsie’ (Twelfth Night II, iii, 77-8)

The last of Shakespeare’s romantic comedies contains a good many quibbles and enigmatic passages that up to now have defied explanation. The midnight scene in which Sir Toby Belch, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Feste indulge in revelling and carousing, for instance, presents a number of unsolved textual problems. Sir Toby proposes to his boon companions to rouse Malvolio in a catch. They accept and together they intone ‘Hold thy peace’. The rioting alarms Maria who hastens to warn the unruly company to put an end to their disorder (ii, iii, 74-8o):