Hamlet the Dane.

Laer. The devil take thy foul! [Grappling with him.
Ham. Thou pray't not well.

I pry'thee, take thy fingers from my throat-
For though I am not splenitive and rash,
Yet have I in me fomething dangerous,

Which let thy wifdom fear.
King. Pluck them afunder
Queen, Hamlet, Hamlet-

Hold off thy hand.

Hor. Good my Lord, be quiet.

[The attendanss part them.

Ham. Why, I will fight with him upon this theme,

Until my eye lids will no longer wag.

Queen. Oh my fon! what theme?

Ham. I lov'd Ophelia; forty thousand brothers

Could not with all their quantity of love

Make up my fum. What wilt thou do for her ?
King. O, he is mad Laertes.

Queen. For love of God, forbear him.
Ham. Come, fhew me what thou'lt do.

[selt ?

Woo't weep? woo't fight? woo't faft? woo't tear thy

Woo't drink up eifel, eat a crocodile ?

I'll do't-Doft thou come hither but to whine ?

To outface me with leaping in her grave?
Be buried quick with her; and fo will I ;
And if thou prat of mountains, let them throw
Millions of acres on us, till our ground,
Singeing his pate against the burning fun,
Make Offa like a wart! nay, an thou'lt mouth,
I'll rant as well as thou.

Queen. This is mere madnefs;

And thus a while the fit will work on him : "Anon as patient as the female dove,

"Ere that her golden couplets * are difclos'd, "His filence will fit drooping.

Ham. Hear you, Sir

What is the reafon that you use me thus?

* By golden couplets are meant, her two young ones; for doves feldom lay more than two eggs; and the young ones, when first disclo fed or hatched, are covered with a kind of yellow down; when they are firft hatched, the female broods over them more carefully and fe dulously, than ever, as then they require most fostering,

I lov'd you ever; but it is no matter
Let Hercules himfelf do what he may,
The cat will mew, the dog will have his day.

[Exit.

King. I pray you, good Horatio, wait upon him.

[Exit Hor.

Strengthen your patience in our laft night's fpeech.

[To Laertes.

We'll put the matter to the prefent push.
Good Gertrude, fet fome watch over your fon.
This grave fhall have a living monument.
An hour of quiet fhortly fhall we fee;
1ill then in patience our proceeding be.

SCENE III.

[Exeunt.

Changes to a hall in the palace.

Enter Hamlet and Horatio.

Ham. So much for this, now fhall you fee the other, You do remember all the circumftance?

Hor. Remember it, my Lord?

Ham. Sir, in my heart there was a kind of fighting, That would not let me fleep; methought I lay Worfe than the mutines in the bilboes; rafkness (And prais'd be rashness for it) lets us know; Our indifcretion fometimes ferves us well,

When our deep plots do fail; " and that should teach "There's a divinity that fhapes our ends,

66

Rough-hew them how we will,

Hor. That is most certain.

Ham. Up from my cabbin,

My fea-grown fearf about me, in the dark
Grop'd to find out them; had my defire
Finger'd their packet, and in fine withdrew
To mine own room again; making so hold
(My fears forgetting manners) to unfeal
Their grand commiffion, where I found, Horatio,
A royal knavery; an exact command,
Larded with many feveral forts of reasons,

Importing Denmark's health, and England's too,
With, ho! fuch buggs and goblins in my life;
That on the fupervite, no leifure bated *,
No, Not to tay the grinding of the ax,

• bated, for allowed.

[us

My head fhould be struck off.

Hor. Is't poffible?

Ham. Here's the commiffion, read it at more leifure; But wilt thou hear now how I did proceed? Hor. I befeech you.

Ham. being thus benetted round with villains,
(Ere I could mark the prologue to my bane
They had begun the play), I sat me down,
Devis'd a new commiffion, wrote it fair :
(I once did hold it, as our ftatifts do,

A baseness to write fair; and labour'd much
How to forget that learning; but, Sir, now
It did me yeoman's fervice): wilt thou know
Ih' effect of what I wrote ?

Hor. Ay, good my Lord.

Ham. An earnest conjuration from the King,
As England was his faithful tributary,

As love between them, like the palm, might flourish,
As Peace fhould ftill her wheaten garland wear,
And stand a commere 'tween their amities;
And many fuch like as's of great charge;
That on the view and knowing these contents,
Without debatement further, more or less,
He fhould the bearers put to fudden death,
Not thriving time allow'd.

Hor. How was this feal'd?

Ham. Way, ev'n in that was heaven ordinant;
I had my father's fignet in my purfe,
Which was the model of that Danish feal;

I folded the writ up in form of th' other,
Subfcrib'd it, gave th' impreffion, plac'd it fafely,
The changeling never known. Now, the next day
Was our fea fight, and what to this was fequent,
Thou know't already,

Hor. So, Guildenstern and Rofincrantz go to't.
Ham. Why, man, they did make love to this em-
ployment.

They are not near my confcience; their defeat
Doth by their own infinuation * grow.

'Tis dangerous when the bafer nature comes "Between the pafs and fell incensed points

⚫ infinuation, for curruptly obtruding themselves into his fervice.

"Of mighty oppofites.

Hor. Why, what a King is this?

Ham. Does it not, think'ft thou, ftand me now

upon?

He that hath kill'd my King, and whor'd my mother, Popt in between th' election and my hopes,

Thrown out his angle for my proper life,

And with fuch cozenage; is't not perfect confcience, To quit him with this arm? and is't not to be damn'd, To let this canker of our nature come

In further evil?

Hor. It must be shortly known to him from England, What is the iffue of the business there.

Ham. It will be short.

The interim's mine; and a man's life's no more
Than to fay, one.

But I am very forry, good Horatio,

That to Laertes I forgot myfelf;

For by the image of my caufe I fee

The portraiture of his; I'll court his favour :
But, fure, the bravery of his grief did put me
Into a tow'ring paffion.

Hor. Peace, who comes here?

Ofr. Your Lordship is right welcome back to Denmark.

Ham I humbly thank you, Sir. Doft know this wa ter-fly?

Hor. No, my good Lord.

Ham. Thy ftate is the more gracious; for 'tis a vice to know him: he hath much land, and fertile; let a beast be lord of beasts, and his crib fhall stand at the King's meffe; 'tis a chough; but, as I fay, fpacious in the poffeffion of dirt.

Ofr. Sweet Lord, if your Lordship were at leisure, I fhould impart a thing to you from his Majesty.

Ham. I will receive it with all diligence of fpirit; your bonnet to his right use,- 'tis for the head.

Ofr. I thank your Lordship, 'tis very hot. Ham. No, believe me, 'tis northerly,

very cold; the wind is

Ofr. It is indifferent cold, my Lord, indeed.

Ham. But yet methinks it is very fultry, and hot, or my complexion.

Ofr. Exceedingly, my Lord; it is very fultry, as 'twere, I cannot tell how.-- My Lord, his Majefty bid me fignify to you, that he has laid a great wager on your head. Sir, this is the matter.

Ham I beseech you remember

Ofr. Nay, in good faith, for mine eafe, in good faith. -Sir, here is newly come to court Laertes; be• lieve me, an abfolute gentleman, full of most excellent differences, of very folt fociety, and great fhew: indeed, to speak feelingly of him, he is the card or kalendar of gentry; for you fhall find in him the continent of what part a gentleman would fee.

Ham. Sir, his definement fuffers no perdition in you; tho' I know, to divide him inventorially, would dizzy the arithmetic of memory; and yet but flow neither in refpect of his quick fail. But, in the verity of extolment, I take him to be a foul of great article; and his infufion of fuch dearth and rareness, as, to make true diction of him, his femblable is his mirrour, and who elfe would trace him, his umbrage, nothing more,

Ofr. Your Lordship speaks molt infallibly of him, Ham. The concernancy, Sir?- -Why do we wrap the gentleman in our more rawer breath? [To Horatio. Ofr. Sir,

Hor. Is't not poffible to understand in another tongue ? you will do't, Sir, rarely.

Ham. What imports the nomination of this gentleman?

Ofr. Of Laertes ?

Hor. His purfe is empty already: all's golden words are spent.

Ham. Of him, Sir.

Ofr. I know you are not ignorant,

Ham, I would you did, Sir; yet, in faith, if you did, it would not much approve me Well, Sir. Ofr. You are not ignorant of what excellence Laertes is. Ham. I dare not confefs that, left 1 fhould compare with him in excellence; but to know a man well, were to know himself.

VOL. VIII.