232 Out of his Lunacies. Gail. We will ang sắt wad of provide ourselves; Moft holy and religious fear it is 28 75 bas blauoy es bпA That live and feed upon your Majefty 2 O Rof: The fingle and peculiar life is bound, peculiar life is With all the ftrength and armour of the mind, To keep itself from noyance, but much more, That.ipirit, on whofe weal depends and refts The lives of many. The ceafe of Majelty v Dies not alone, but, like a gulf, doth draw What's near it with it. It's a mafly wheelford A Fixt on the fummit of the higheft mount, To whofe huge spokes ten thousand leffer things yM Are mortiz'd and adjoin'd; which, when it falls, bn A Each small annexment, petty confequence, Left I Attends the boiftrous ruin. Ne'er alone od baA Pikon diod Did the King figh, but with a general groan. 4919 King. Arm you, I pray you, to this fpeedy voyage; For we will fetters put upon this fear, widow of Which now goes too free-footed. Both. We will hafte us." vait en inorinco pi ma [Exeunt Gentlemen. Wat of MHGV ow or bellefl-arot ed oT Pol. My Lord, he's going to his Behind the arras I'll convey myfelf 8 Out of his Lunacies.] The old quarto's read, Out of his Brows. This was from the ignorance of the first editors; as is this anneceffary Alexandrine, which we owe to the players. The poet, I am perfuaded, wrote, as deth hourly grow. Out of bis Lunes.. i madness, frenzy, THEOB. 2. ding ei alust yM mother's closet; ad consid iw not attoto slodi 10 I take Brows read, Frows, which properly I think, is a provincial word, for perverle humours; which being, I fuppofe, notunderflood, was changed to Lunacies. But of this It am not confident. !་ •9. That spirit, on whose weal-] So the quarto. The folio gives, On whole fpirit, HT To hear the procefs. I'll warrant, the'll tax him 95,1514. home. And, as you faid, and wifely was it faid,tods goed of of vantage, Fare you well, my Liege; I'll call upon you ere you go to bed, And tell you what I know. King. Thanks, dear my Lord. Oh! my offence is rank. it fmells to heav'n, 2 Vis Though inclination be as fharp as 't will Ander guilt defeats my ftrong intent: [Exit. And, like a man to double bufinefs bound, And what's in prayer, but this two-fold force, Or pardon'd being down? Then I'll look up; Of those effects for which I did the murder, My Crown, mine own Ambition, and my Queen. ટમે it. Of vantage. By fome opportunity of fecret obfervation. 2 Though inclination be as sharp [ WILL] This is rank nonfenfe. We should read, fi The inclination be as sharp as crime does. The line immedi ately following fhews this to be the true reading, My Aronger guilt defeats my frong intent. WARB. I have followed the eafier. emendation of Theobald, received by Hanmer. May 3 May one be pardon'd, and retain th' offence?, 3 May one be pardon'd, and retain th' OFFENCE; This is a ftrange queftion; and much the fame as to ask whether his offence could be remitted while it was retain'd. Shakespear here repeated a word with propriety and elegance which he employed two lines above, May one be pardon'd, and retain th' EFFECTS? i. e. of his murder, and this was a reasonable queftion. He ufes the word offence, properly, in the next line but one, and from thence; I fuppofe, came the blunWARBURTON. der. I fee no difficulty in the prefent reading. He that does not amend what can be amended, re tains his offence. The King kept the crown from the right heir. Yet what can it, when one CANNOT repent?] This nonfenfe even exceeds the laft. ShakeSpear wrote, Yet what can it, when one CAN BUT repent? 2. e. what can repentance do without reflitution? a natural Oh and reafonable thought; and which the tranfcribers might have feen was the refult of his preceding reflections., -Forgive me my foul murther! That cannot be, fince I am fill poffeft Of those effects, for which I did the murther, My Crown, my own Ambition, and my Queen. May one le pardon'd, and retain -in effects? befides, the poet could never have made his fpeaker fay, be could not repent, when this whole fpeech is one thorough act of the And difcipline of contrition. what was wanting was the matter of reftitution: this, the speaker could not refolve upon; which makes him break out, Oh limed foul, that, struggling to get free, Art more engaged! For it is natural, while the reftitution of what one highly values is projected, that the fondness for it fhould ftrike the imagination with double force. Because the man, Oh wretched ftate! oh bofom, black as death! Be foft as finews of the new-born babe! All may be well. [The King retires and kneels. SCENE Enter Hamlet. IX. Ham. Now might I do it pat, now he is praying, And now I'll do't. And fo he And fo he goes to heav'n. The fenfe of the received reading is, I think, fo plain, that I am afraid left it fhould be obfcured by any attempt at illuftration. What can repentance do for a man that can not be penitent, for a man who has only part of penitence, diftrefs of confcience, without the other part, resolution of amendment. 5 I, his fole fon, do this fame villain fend] The folio reads foule fon. This will lead us to the true reading, which To heav'n. O, this is hire and falary, not revenge. With all his crimes broad blown, as flush as May; Then trip him, that his heels may kick at heav'n very natural to conclude, that with the change of a fingle letter, our author's genuine word was, Bent; i. e. drift, Scope, inclination, purpose, &c. THEOBALD. This reading is followed by Sir T. Hanmer and Dr. Warbur ton; but Hent is probably the right word. To hent is used by Shakespeare for, to feize, to catch, to lay hold on, Hent is therefore, bold, or Jeizure. Lay hold on him, fword, at a more horrid time, Sirene 7 As bell, hereto it goes.-] This fpeech, in which Hamlet, reprefented as a virtuous character, is not content with taking blood for blood, but contrives damnation for the man that he would punish, is too horrible ta be read or to be uttered, The |