Note 964 — INDEX TO THE NOTES.

mincing Dryades. The Dryades are wood-nymphs (Gk. δρῦς, a tree), here represented as mincing, i.e. tripping with short steps, unlike the clumsy striding of the country people. Comp. Merch. of V. iii. 4. 67: “turn two mincing steps Into a manly stride.” Applied to a person’s gait (or speech), the word now implies affectation.