If And bid me hold my peace. I pray you all, All. Our duty to your honour. Ham. Your loves, as mine to you: Farewell. [Exeunt HORATIO, MARCELLUS, and BER NARDO. My father's spirit in arms! all is not well; SCENE III. A Room in Polonius' House. Enter LAERTES and OPHELIA. Laer. My necessaries are embark'd; farewell: And, sister, as the winds give benefit, And convoy is assistant, do not sleep, But let me hear from you. Oph. Do you doubt that? Laer. For Hamlet, and the trifling of his favour, Hold it a fashion, and a toy in blood; A violet in the youth of primy nature, Forward, not permanent, sweet, not lasting, The perfume and suppliance of a minute;] i. e. what was supplied to us for a minute; or, perhaps, an amusement to fill up a vacant moment, and render it agreeable. Oph. 2 No more but so? Think it no more: For nature, crescent, does not grow alone Grows wide withal. Perhaps, he loves you now; Carve for himself; for on his choice depends you, It fits your wisdom so far to believe it, May give his saying deed; which is no further, Fear it, Ophelia, fear it, my dear sister; In thews,] i. e. in sinews, muscular strength. The virtue of his will;] From cautela, which signifies only a prudent foresight or caution; but, passing through French hands, it lost its innocence, and now signifies fraud, deceit. The virtue of his will means, his virtuous intentions. unmaster'd-] i. e. licentious. keep you in the rear, &c.] That is, do not advance so far as your affection would lead you. The chariest maid is prodigal enough, Oph. I shall the effect of this good lesson keep, As watchman to my heart: But, good my brother, Do not, as some ungracious pastors do, Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven; Laer. O fear me not. I stay too long;-But here my father comes. Enter POLONIUS. A double blessing is a double grace; Pol. Yet here, Laertes! aboard, aboard, for shame; The wind sits in the shoulder of your sail, And you are staid for: There, my blessing with you; [Laying his Hand on LAERTES' Head. And these few precepts in thy memory Look thou charácter. Give thy thoughts no tongue, Nor any unproportion'd thought his act. • The chariest maid-] Chary is cautious. lessons. 8 recks not his own read.] That is, heeds not his own the shoulder of your sail,] This is a common sea phrase. 9. Look thou charácter.] i. e. write, strongly infix. Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar. Bear it that the opposer may beware of thee. ment. 2 Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy, But not express'd in fancy; rich, not gaudy: And they in France, of the best rank and station, 1 But do not dull thy palm with entertainment Of each new-hatch'd, unfledg'd comrade.] The literal sense is, Do not make thy palm callous by shaking every man by the hand. The figurative meaning may be, Do not by promiscuous conversation make thy mind insensible to the difference of characters. 2 each man's censure,] Censure is opinion. JOHNSON. Are most select and generous, chief in that.] i. e. the nobility of France are select and generous above all other nations, and chiefly in the point of apparel; the richness and elegance of their dress. 5 of husbandry.] i. e. of thrift; œconomical prudence. my blessing season this in thee!] Infix it in such a manner as that it never may wear out. 6 servants tend.] i. e. your servants are waiting for you. Laer. Farewell, Ophelia; and remember well What I have said to you. Oph. And you yourself shall keep the key of it." Laer. Farewell. 'Tis in my memory lock'd, [Exit LAERTES. Pol. What is't, Ophelia, he hath said to you? Oph. So please you, something touching the lord Hamlet. Pol. Marry, well bethought: 'Tis told me, he hath very oft of late Given private time to you: and you yourself ous: If it be so, (as so 'tis put on me, And that in way of caution,) I must tell you, tenders Of his affection to me. Pol. Affection? puh! you speak like a green girl, Unsifted in such perilous circumstance. Do you believe his tenders, as you call them? Oph. I do not know, my lord, what I should think. Pol. Marry, I'll teach you: think yourself a baby; That you have ta'en these tenders for true pay, Which are not sterling. Tender yourself more dearly; 7 - yourself shall keep the key of it.] i. e. your counsels are as sure of remaining locked up in my memory, as if yourself carried the key of it. 8 Unsifted-] Unsifted for untried. Untried signifies either not tempted, or not refined; unsifted signifies the latter only, though the sense requires the former. 9 Tender yourself more dearly;] To tender is to regard with affection. |