At laft, a little fhaking of mine arm,
And thrice his head thus waving up and down,
He rais'd a figh fo piteous and profound,

That it did seem to fhatter all his bulk,
And end his Being. Then he lets me go,
And, with his head over his fhoulder turn'd,
He feem'd to find his way without his eyes;
For out o' doors he went without their help,
And, to the laft, bended their light on me.
Pol. Come, go with me, I will
I will go
feek the King,

This is the very ecftacy of love,
Whofe violent property foredoes itself,
And leads the Will to defp'rate undertakings,
As oft as any paffion under heav'n,

That does afflict our natures., Iam forry

What, have you giv'n him any hard words of late? Oph. No, my good lord; but, as you did command, I did repel his letters, and deny'd

His access to me.

Pol. That hath made him mad.

I'm forry, that with better speed and judgment
7 I had not quoted him. I fear'd, he triff'd,
And meant to wreck thee; but befhrew my jealoufy;
It seems, it is as proper to our age

To caft beyond ourselves in our opinions,
As it is common for the younger fort

To lack difcretion. Come; go we to the King.

7 I had not QUOTED him.-] The old quarto reads coted. It appears Shakespear wrote NOTED. Quoted is nonfenfe. WARB.

To quote is, I believe, to reckon, to take an account of, to take the quotient or refult of a computation.

8 it is as proper to our age
To caft beyond ourselves in our
opinions,

As it is common for the younger
fort
VOL. VIII.

To lack difcretion.--] This is not the remark of a weak man. The vice of age is too much fufpicion. Men long accufiomed to the wiles of life ca commonly be,ond then flves, let their cunning go further than reafon can attend it. This is always the fault of a little mind, made artful by long commerce with the world.

N

This

This must be known; which, being kept clofe, might move

More grief to hide, than hate to utter, love. [Exeunt.

Enter King, Queen, Rofincrantz, Guildenftern, Lords, and other Attendants.

King.WELCOME, dear Rofincrantz, and Guild

enstern!

Moreover that we much did long to see you,
The need, we have to ufe you did provoke
Our hafty fending. Something you have heard
Of Hamlet's transformation; fo I call it,

Since not th' exterior nor the inward man
Refembles that it was. What it fhould be
More than his father's death, that thus hath put him
So much from th'understanding of himself,

I cannot dream of. I entreat you both,

That being of fo young days brought up with him,
And fince fo neighbour'd to his youth and humour,
That you vouchsafe your Reft here in our Court
Some little time; fo by your companies
To draw him on to pleasures, and to gather,

This must be known; which, being kept cofe, might move More grief to hide, than hate to utter, love.] i. e. This muft be made known to the King, for (being kept fecret) the hiding Hamlet's love might occafion more mischief to us from him and the Queen, than the uttering or revealing of it

will occafion hate and refentment
from Hamlet. The poet's ill
and obfcure expreffion feems to
have been caufed by his affecta-
tion of concluding the fene with
a couplet.
WARB.

Hanmer reads,
More grief to hide hate, than
to utter love.

So

So much as from occafions you may glean,
If aught, to us unknown, afflicts him thus,
That open'd lies within our remedy.

Queen. Good gentlemen, he hath much talk'd of you;

And, fure I am, two men there are not living,
To whom he more adheres. If it will please you
To fhew us fo much gentry and good-will,
As to expend your time with us a while,
2 For the supply and profit of our hope,
Your visitation fhall receive fuch thanks,
As fits a King's remembrance.

Rof. Both your majesties

Might, by the fov'reign pow'r you have of us,
Put your dread pleasures more into command
Than to entreaty.

Guil. But we both obey,

And here give up ourselves, 3 in the full bent,
To lay our service freely at your feet.

King. Thanks, Rofincrantz, and gentle Guildenstern.
Queen. Thanks, Guildenstern, and gentle Rofin-

crantz.

And, I befeech you, inftantly to visit

My too much changed fon. Go, some of ye,
And bring thefe gentlemen where Hamlet is.

Guil. Heav'ns make our prefence and our practices Pleasant and helpful to him! [Exeunt Rof. and Guil, Queen. Amen.

Enter Polonius.

Pol. Th' ambaffadors from Norway, my good Lord,

Are joyfully return'd.

› To shew us so much gentry] Gentry, for comWARBURTON.

plaifance.

2 For the Supply, &c.] That the hope which your arrival has

N

King. Thou still haft been the father of good news. Pol. Have I, my Lord? affure you, my good Liege,

I hold my duty, as I hold my foul,

Both to my God, and to my gracious King;
And I do think, or elfe this brain of mine
Hunts not the trail of policy fo fure
As I have us'd to do, that I have found
The very caufe of Hamlet's lunacy.

King. Oh, fpeak of that, that I do long to hear.
Pol. Give firft admittance to th' ambaffadors.
My news fhall be the fruit of that great feast.
King. Thyfelf do grace to them, and bring them

in.

5

[Exit, Pol. He tells me, my fweet Queen, that he hath found The head and fource of all your fon's diftemper.

Queen. I doubt, it is no other but the main, His father's death, and our o'er-hafty marriage.

Re-enter Polonius, with Voltimand, and Cornelius.

King. Well, we shall fift him.-Welcome, my good friends!

Say, Voltimand, what from our brother Norway?
Volt. Moft fair return of Greetings, and Defires.
Upon our firft, he fent out to suppress

His Nephew's levies, which to him appear'd
To be a preparation 'gainst the Polack,
But, better look'd into, he truly found

4the trail of policy---] The 5

the fruit- -] The def

trail is the courfe of an animal fert after the meat.

purfued by the fent.

It was against your Highness: Whereat griev'd,
That fo his ficknefs, age, and impotence
Was falfely borne in hand, fends out Arrefts
On Fontinbras; which he, in brief, obeys;
Receives rebuke from Norway; and, in fine,
Makes vow before his uncle, never more
To give th' affay of arms against your Majefty.
Whereon old Norway, overcome with joy,

• Gives him threefcore thoufand crowns in annual fee;
And his Commiffion to employ thofe foldiers,
So levied as before, against the Polack:
With an entreaty, herein further fhewn,
That it might please you to give quiet Pafs
Through your Dominions for this enterprize,
On fuch regards of fafety and allowance,
As therein are fet down.

King. It likes us well;

And at our more confider'd time we'll read,
Answer, and think upon this business.

Mean time, we thank you for your well-took labour.
Go to your Reft; 7 at night we'll feast together.

Moft welcome home!

-8

[Exeunt Ambaf.

Pol. This bufinefs is well ended.
My liege, and Madam, 9 to expoftulate