Laer. A touch, a touch, I do confefs.

15 King. Our fon fhall win.

2 An union is the finest sort of pearl, and has its place in all 3 Under pretence of throwing a pearl into the cup, the king may be fuppofed to drop fome poisonous drug into the wine. Hamlet feems to suspect this, when he afterwards discovers the effects of the poison, and tauntingly asks him,-Is the union bere? man feeble and effeminate.

Unbated, and envenom'd: the foul practice
Hath turn'd itself on me; lo, here I lie,
Never to rife again: Thy mother's poifon'd;
I can no more;-the king, the king's to blame.
Ham. The point envenom'd too!-
Then, venom, to thy work.

Ail. Treafon! treason!

[Stabs the king.

King. O, yet defend me, friends, I am but hurt.
Ham. Here, thou incestuous, murd'rous, damned

Dane,

Drink off this potion:-Is the union here?
Follow my mother.

Laer. He is justly ferv'd;

[King dies.

It is a poifon temper'd by himself.—
Exchange forgiveness with me, noble Hamlet:
Mine and my father's death come not upon thee;
Nor thine on me!

[Dies. Ham. Heaven make thee free of it! I follow thee.

I am dead, Horatio:-Wretched queen, adieu!
You that look pale and tremble at this chance,
That are but mutes or audience to this act,
Had I but time, (as this fell ferjeant, death,
Is ftrict in his arreft) O, I could tell you,-
But let it be :-Horatio, I am dead;
Thou liv'ft; report me and my cause aright
To the unfatisfied.

Hor. Never believe it;

I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,
Here's yet fome liquor left.

Ham. As thou'rt a man,

Give me the cup; let go; by heaven, I'll have it.
O God!-Horatio, what a wounded name,
Things ftand.ng thus unknown, fhall live behind
me?

If thou didst ever hold me in thy heart,
Abfent thee from felicity a while,

And in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain,
To tell my story.-

Enter Fortinbras, the English Embassaders, and

others.

For. Where is this fight?

Hor. What is it, you would fee?

5 If aught of woe, or wonder, ceafe your fearch.
Fort. This quarry cries, on havock!-O proud
death!

What feaft is toward in thine infernal cell,
That thou fo many princes, at a shot,

10 So bloodily hast struck?

Emb. The fight is difmal;

And our affairs from England come too late:
The ears are fenfelefs, that fhould give us hearing,
To tell him, his commandment is fulfill'd,

15 That Rofencrantz and Guildenstern are dead:
Where fhould we have our thanks?

Hor. Not from his 3 mouth,
Had it the ability of life to thank you;

He never gave commandment for their death.
20 But fince, fo jump upon this bloody queftion,
You from the Polack wars, and you from England
Are here arriv'd; give order, that these bodies
High on a stage be placed to the view;
And let me fpeak, to the yet unknowing world,
25 How these things came about: So fhall you hear
Of cruel, bloody, and unnatural acts;

Of accidental judgments, casual slaughters;
Of deaths put on by cunning, and forc'd caufe;
[And, in this upshot, purposes mistook

30 Fall'n on the inventors' heads: all this can I
Truly deliver.

Fort. Let us hafte to hear it,

And call the nobleft to the audience. For me, with forrow I embrace my fortune; 35I have fome rights of memory in this kingdom, Which now to claim my vantage doth invite me. Hor. Of that I fhall have also cause to speak, And from his mouth whofe voice will draw on more :

[March afar off, and fhout within. 40 But let this fame be prefently perform'd, What warlike noife is this? Even while men's minds are wild; left more mifchance

Ofr. Young Fortinbras, with conqueft come
from Poland,

To the embaffadors of England gives
This warlike volley.

Ham. O, I die, Horatio;

The potent poifon quite o'er-grows my fpirit;
I cannot live to hear the news from England:
But I do prophefy, the election lights
On Fortinbras; he has my dying voice;
So tell him, with the occurents', more or less,
Which have folicited 2,The reft is filence.

[Dies.

Hor. Now cracks a noble heart:-Good night, sweet prince;

On plots, and errors, happen.

Fort. Let four captains

45 Bear Hamlet, like a foldier, to the stage;
For he was likely, had he been put on,

To have prov'd most royally: and, for his paffage,
The foldiers' mufic, and the rites of war,
Speak loudly for him.

50 Take up the bodies:Such a fight as this
Becomes the field, but here fhews much amifs.
Go, bid the foldiers shoot.

And frights of angels fing thee to thy rest!—
Why does the drum come hither?

i. e. incidents. The word is now difufed.

king'.

3 X

OTHELLO.

Officers, Gentlemen, Mejengers, Muficians, Sailors, and Attendants.

SCENE, for the firft At, in Venice; during the rest of the Play, in Cyprus.

As if the ftrings were thine,-shouldft know of 10 That never fet a squadron in the field,

this.

Iago. But you'll not hear me :

If ever I did dream of fuch a matter, abhor me.

Rod. Thou toldft me, thou didst hold him in

thy hate.

Tag. Despise me if I do not.

Nor the divifion of a battle knows

More than a spinfter; unless the bookish theoric4,
Wherein the toged confuls 5 can propose

As masterly as he mere prattle, without practice,
Is all his foldiership. But he, fir, had the election:
And I,-of whom his eyes had feen the proof,
At Rhodes, at Cyprus; and on other grounds
Chriftian and heathen, must be be-lee'd and calm'd
By debtor and creditor, this counter-cafter;
20 He, in good time, muft his lieutenant be,

[of the city, 15
Three great ones
In perfonal fuit to make me his lieutenant,
Oft capp'd to him; and, by the faith of man,
I know my price, I am worth no worse a place:
But he, as loving his own pride and purposes,

2 i. e. certainly, in truth. Obfolete.

3 On

The story is taken from Cynthio's Novels. thefe lines Dr. Johnson obferves, "This is one of the paffages which muft for the prefent be refigned to corruption and obfcurity. I have nothing that I can, with any approach to confidence, propose." Mr. Tyrwhitt ingeniously proposes to read, "damn'd in a fair life;" and is of opinion, that "Shakfpeare alludes to the judgment denounced in the gospel against thofe of whom all men speak well." He adds, that the character of Caffio is certainly fuch, as would be very likely to draw upon him all the peril of this denunciation, literally understood. Well-bred, eafy, fociable, good-natured; with abilities enough to make him agreeable and useful, but not fufficient to excite the envy of his equals, or to alarm the jealoufy of his fuperiors. It may be obferved too, that Shakspeare has thought it proper to make Iago, in feveral other paffages, bear his teftimony to the amiable qualities of his rival." 4 Theoric, for theory. 6 5 Confuls, for counsellors. It was anciently the practice to reckon up fums

with counters.

Is fpy'd in populous cities.

Rod. What ho! Brabantio! fignior Brabantio, ho! [thieves! Iago. Awake! what, ho! Brabantio! thieves! Look to your house, your daughter, and your bags! Thieves! thieves!

Brabantio, above, at a window.

Bra. What is the reason of this terrible summons? What is the matter there?

Red. Signior, is all your family within?

Jago. Are your doors lock'd?

Bra. Why? wherefore ask you this?

Iago. Sir, you are robb'd; for fhame, put on

your gown;

15 Your heart is burst", you have lost half your foul;
Even now, very now, an old black ram

Is tupping your white ewe. Arife, arise;
Awake the fnorting citizens with the bell,
Or elfe the devil will make a grandfire of you:
20 Arife, I fay.

Whip me fuch honest knaves 4: Others there are,
Who, trimm'd in forms and visages of duty,
Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves;
And, throwing but shows of fervice on their lords,
Do well thrive by them, and, when they have lin'd 25
their coats,

[foul;

Do themselves homage: thefe fellows have fome
And fuch a one I do profefs myself.

For, fr,

It is as fure as you are Roderigo,

Were I the Moor, I would not be Iago:
In following him, I follow but myself;
Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
But feeming fo, for my peculiar end :
For when my outward action doth demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart
In compliment extern, 'tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at: I am not what I am.

Bra. What, have you loft your wits?

Rod. Moft reverend fignior, do you know my
voice?

Bra. Not I; What are you?
Rod. My name is-Roderigo.
Bra. The worse welcome :

I have charg'd thee, not to haunt about my doors:
In honeft plainness thou haft heard me say,
My daughter is not for thee: and now, in madness,
30 Being full of fupper, and diftempering draughts,
Upon malicious bravery, doft thou come
To ftart my quiet.

Rod. Sir, fir, fir,

Bre. But thou must needs be fure,

35 My fpirit, and my place, have in them power To make this bitter to thee.

Rod. What a full fortune 5 does the thick lips 40 If he can carry 't thus!

Jago. Call up her father,

[owe,

Roufe him: make after him, poifon his delight,
Proclaim him in the streets; incenfe her kinfmen,
And, though he in a fertile climate dwell,
Plague him with flies: though that his joy be joy,
Yet throw fuch changes of vexation on 't,
As it may lofe fome colour.

Rod. Patience, good fir.

[Venice;

Bra. What tell'ft thou me of robbing? this is My houfe is not a grange 7.

Rod. Moft grave Brabantio,

In fimple and pure foul I come to you.

Iago. Sir, you are one of thofe, that will not ferve God, if the devil bid you. Because we come to do you fervice, you think we are ruffians. 45 You'll have your daughter cover'd with a Barbary horfe; you'll have your nephews neigh to you: you'll have courfers for coufins, and gennets for germans.

Rod. Here is her father's houfe; I'll call aloud.] Iago. Do; with light timorous accent, and dire 50 yell,

As when, by night and negligence, the fire

10

Bra. What profane 1° wretch art thou?

Iago. I am one, fir, that comes to tell you, your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs.

1 It has been obferved, that the Scots, when they compare person to perfon, use this exclamation. 2 i.e. by recommendation from powerful friends. 3 The meaning is, Do I ftand within any fuch terms of propinquity or relation to the Moor, as that it is my duty to love him? 4 Knave is here used for fervant, but with a mixture of fly contempt. 5 Full fortune may mean a complete piece of good fortune. To cwe is in ancient language, to own, to poffefs. 6 i. e. broken. 7 That is," You are in a populous city, not in a lone boufe, where a robbery might easily be committed." Grange is ftriatly and properly the farm of a monaftery, where the religious repofited their corn. But in Lincolnshire, and in other northern counties, they call every lone houfe, or farm which ftands folitary, a grange. 8 Nephew, in this inftance, has the power of the Latin word nepos, and fignifies a grandfon, or any lineal defcendant, however remote. 9 A jennet is a Spanish horse. 10 That is, what wretch of grofs and licentious language? 11 This is an ancient proverbial expreffion in the French language, whence Shakspeare probably borrowed it.

Bra.