:

Ber. * I think, it be no other; but even fo
Well may it fort, that this portentous figure
Comes armed through our watch so like the King,
That was, and is, the question of thefe wars.

Hor. A mote it is to trouble the mind's eye.
In the most high and & palmy State of Rome,
A little ere the mightiest Julius fell,
The Graves stood tenantless; and the sheeted Dead
Did squeak and gibber in the Roman streets;
Stars shone with trains of fire, Dews of blood fell;
5 Disasters veil'd the Sun; and the moist Star,
Upon whose influence Neptune's Empire stands,
Was fick almost to dooms-day with eclipse.
And even the like precurse of fierce events,
As harbingers preceding still the fates,
And prologue to the omen'd coming on,
Have beav'n and earth together demonstrated
Uato our climatures and country-men.

Enter Ghost again.

But foft, behold! lo, where it comes again!.
I'll cross it, though it blaft me. Stay, illufion!..

3

1

:

[Spreading his Arms. 6-precurse of fierce events,] Fierce, for terrible.

-1

WARB.

* These, and all other lines printed in the Italick letter, throughout this play, are omitted 7 And prologue to the omen in the folio edition of 1623.coming on. ] But prologue and The omiffions leave the play sometimes better and sometimes worse, and seem made only for the fake of abbreviation.

omen are merely synonymous here. The Poet means, that these strange Phænomena are prologues and fore-runners of the events prefag'd: And such sense the flight alteration, which I have ventured to make, by changing omen to omen'd, very aptly gives.

• If thou hast any found, or use of voice, Speak to me.

If there be any good thing to be done,

That may to thee do ease, and grace to me,

Speak to me.

190334

If thou art privy to thy Country's fate,
Which happily foreknowing may avoid,

Oh fpeak!

A

Or, if thou hast uphoarded in thy life
Extorted treasure in the womb of earth,

1

For which, they say, you Spirits oft walk in death,

[Cock crows.

Speak of it. Stay, and speak-Stop it, Marcellus-
Mar. Shall I strike it with my partizan?
Hor. Do, if it will not stand.

Ber. 'Tis here

Hor. 'Tis here

Mar. 'Tis gone.

We do it wrong, being so majestical,

To offer it the shew of violence;

For it is as the air, invulnerable,

And our vain blows, malicious mockery.

[Exit Ghost,

Ber. It was about to speak when the cock crew.
Hor. And then it started like a guilty thing

Upon a fearful Summons. I have heard,
The cock, that is the trumpet to the morn,
Doth with his lofty and shrill-founding throat
Awake the God of day; and, at his warning,
9 Whether in fea or fire, in earth or air,

8 If thou hast any found, The speech of Horatio to the spectre is very elegant and noble, and congruous to the common traditions of the causes of apparitions.

9 According to the pneuma

Th'

F

* Th' extravagant and erring Spirit hies
To his Confine: And of the truth herein
This present object made probation.

Mer. It faded on the crowing of the cock.
Some say, that ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein our Saviour's birth is celebrated,
The bird of Dawning fingeth all night long:
And then, they say, no Spirit can walk abroad,
The nights are wholecome, then no planets strike,
3 No fairy takes, no witch hath power to charm;
So hallow'd and so gracious is the time.

4.

Hor. So have I heard, and do in part believe it.
But look, the morn, in russet mantle clad,
Walks o'er the dew of yon 4 high eastern hill.
Break we our watch up; and, by my advice,
Let us impart what we have seen to night
Unto young Hamlet; for, upon my life,
This Spirit, dumb to us, will speak to him:
Do you confent, we shall acquaint him with it,
As needful in our loves, fitting our duty?

Mar. Let's do't, I pray; and I this morning know

Where we shall find him most conveniently. [Exeunt.

out of their element, whether aerial spirits visiting earth, or earthly spirits ranging the air, return to their station, to their proper limits in which they are confined, We might read,

And at his warning Th' extravagant and erring Spirit bies

To bis Confine, whether in fea or air,

Or earth, or fire. And of, &c. But this change, tho' it would smooth the construction, is not

1

necessary, and being unnecessary, should not be made against authority.

Th' extravagant] i. e. got out of its bounds. WARB. Dares fiir abroad. Quarto. 3. No fairy takes,] No fairy strikes, with lameness or diseases. This sense of take is frequent in this authour.

4-high eastern bill-] The old quarto has it better eastward.

WARBURTON.

SCENE:

:

Enter Claudius King of Denmark, Gertrude the Queen,
Hamlet, Polonius, Laertes, Voltimand, Cornelius,

Lords and Attendants.

King.

Though yet of Hamlet

death

our dear brother's

The memory be green, and that it us befitted
To bear our hearts in grief, and our whole Kingdom
To be contracted in one brow of woe;

Yet fo far hath Difcretion fought with Nature,
That we with wifeft forrow think on him,
Together with remembrance of our selves.
Therefore our fometime fifter, now our Queen,
T' imperial jointress of this warlike State,
Have we, as 'twere, with a defeated joy,
With one aufpicious, and one dropping eye,
With mirth in funeral, and with dirge in marriage,
In equal scale weighing delight and dole,
Taken to wife.- -Nor have we herein barr'd
Your better wisdoms, which have freely gone
With this affair along. For all, our thanks.
Now follows, that you know, young Fortinbras,
Holding a weak supposal of our worth;
Or thinking by our late dear brother's death
Our State to be disjoint and out of frame;
5 Colleagued with this dream of his advantage,
He hath not fail'd to pester us with message

5 Colleagued with this dream of his advantage,] The meaning is, He goes to war so indiscreetly, and unprepared,

that he has no allies to support him but a Dream, with which he is colleagued or confederated.

WARBURTON.

Importing

Importing the furrender of those Lands
Loft by his father, by all bands of law,
To our most valiant brother. So much for him.
Now for ourself, and for this time of meeting:
Thus much the business is. We have here writ
To Norway, uncle of young Fortinbras,
Who, impotent and bed-rid, scarcely hears
Of this his nephew's purpose, to fupprefs
His further gate herein; in that the Levies,
The Lifts, and full Proportions are all made
Out of his Subjects; and we here dispatch
You, good Cornelius, and you Voltimand,
For bearers of this Greeting to old Norway;
Giving to you no further perfonal power
To business with the King, more than the scope
Of these dilated articles allows.

Farewel, and let you haste commend your duty.
Vol. In that, and all things, will we shew our duty.
King. We doubt in nothing. Heartily farewel.

[Exeunt Voltimand and Cornelius.

And now, Laertes, what's the news with you?
You told us of some fuit. What is't, Laertes?
You cannot fpeak of Reason to the Dane,
And lose your voice. What would'st thou beg,

Laertes,

That shall not be my offer, not thy asking?
The head is not more native to the heart,
The hand more instrumental to the mouth,
Than to the throne of Denmark is thy father.
What wouldst thou have, Laertes ?

6 The HEAD is not more native
to the heart,

The hand more inftrumental to
the mouth,
Than is the Throne of Denmark
to thy father.]
This is

Laer. My

a flagrant instance of the first Editor's fłupidity, in preferring found to sense. But head, heart and hand, he thought must needs go together where an honeft man was the subject of the encomi

um;

I