Ham. Buz, buz.

Pol. Vppon my honor.

Ham. Then came each actor on his affe.

Pol. The best actors in the world, either for tragedy, comedy, history, paftorall, paftorall-comicall, hiftorical-paftorall, feeme * indeuidable, or poem vnlimited.

Seneca cannot bee too

heauy, nor Plautus too light for the lawe of writ, and the liberty thefe are the onely men.

:

Ham. O leptha iudge of Ifraell, what a treasure hadft thou? Pol. What a treasure had he my lord?

Ham. Why one faire daughter and no more, the which hee loued paffing well.

Pol. Still on my daughter.

Ham. Am I not i'th right old Iepthat?

Pol. What followes then my lord ?

Ham. Why as by lot God wot, and then you know it came to paffe, as most like it was; the first rowe of the pious ‡ chanfon will show you more, for looke where my abridgment

comes.

Enter the players.

Ham. You are welcome maifters, welcome all, I am glad to see thee well, welcome good friends, oh old friend, why thy face is valanc'd fince I saw thee last, com'ft thou to beard me in Demark? what my young lady and miftris, by § lady your ladifhippe is nerer to heauen, then when I faw you laft by the altitude of a chopine, pray God your voyce like a peece of vncurrant gold, bee not crackt within the ring: maisters you are all welcome, weele ento't like friendly faukners, flie at any thing we fee, weele haue a fpeech ftraite, come giue vs a taste of your quality, come a paffionate speech.

Scene.

+ Here the two following fpeeches are omitted which are found in the first copy. Pol. If you call me Ieptha my lord, I baue a daughter that I loue passing well. Ham. Nay that followes not.

pans.

§ my.

P3

Player.

Player. What fpeech my good lord?

Ham. I heard thee speake me a speech once, but it was ne uer acted, or if it was, not aboue once, for the play I remember pleafd not the million, t'was cauiary to the general, but it was as I received it and others, whofe iudgments in fuch matters cried in the top of mine, an excellent play, well digested in the fcenes, fet downe with as much modefty as cunning. I remember one fayd there were no fallets in the lines, to make the matter fauory, nor no matter in the phrafe that might indite the author of affection, but cald it an honeft method, as wholesome as fweet, and by very much more handfome then fine: one fpeech in't I chiefly lou'd, t'was Æneas talke to Didɔ, and there about of it efpecially when he fpeakes of Priams flaughter, if it liue in your memory begin at this line, let me fee, let me fee, the rugged Pyrrhus like th' Ircanian beaft, tis not it begins with Pyrrhus. The rugged Pirrhus, hee whofe fable armes,

Blacke as his purpose did the night resemble,
When hee lay couched in th' ominous horse,
Hath now this dread and black complection fmeard,
With heraldy more difmall head to foote,

Now is hee totall gules, horridly trickt

With blood of fathers, mothers, daughters, fonnes,
Bak'd and embafted + with the parching streetes
Than lend a tirranous and a damned light
To their lords murther, rosted in wrath and fire,
And thus ore-cifed with coagulate gore,

With eyes like carbunckles, the hellish Pyrrhus

Old grandfire Priam feekes; fo proceed you.

Pol. Foregod my lord well spoken, with good accent and

good difcretion.

Play. Anon he finds him

Striking too fhort at Greekes, his anticke fword

not fo. † empasted.

Rebellious

Rebellious to his arme, lies where it fals,
Repugnant to command; vnequall matcht,
Pirrhus at Priam driues, in rage ftrikes wide,
But with the whiffe and wind of his fell fword,
Th' vnnerued father falls:

Seeming to feele this blow, with flaming top
Stoopes to his base; and with a hiddious crash
Takes prifoner Pirrhus eare, for lo his fword
Which was declining on the milkie head
Of reuerent Priam, feem'd i'th ayre to stick,
So as a painted tirant Pirrhus ftood

Like a newtrall to his will and matter,
Did nothing:

But as wee often see against some storme,

A filence in the heauens, the racke stand still,
The bould winds fpeechleffe, and the orbe belowe
As hush as death, anone the dreadfull thunder
Doth rend the region, fo after Pirrhus pause,
A rowsed vengeance fets him new a worke,
And neuer did the Cyclops hammers fall,
On Marfes* armor forg'd for proofe eterne,
With lesse remorse then Pirrhus bleeding fword
Now falls on Priam.

Out, out thou ftrumpet fortune! all you gods,

In generall finod take away her power,

Breake all the spokes, and folles + from her wheele,
And boule the round naue downe the hill of heauen

As lowe as to the fiends.

Polo. This is too long.

Ha. It fhal to the barbers with your beard; prethee fay on, he's for a iig, or a tale of bawdry, or he fleepes, fay on, come to Hecuba.

Play. But who, a ‡ woe, had seene the mobled queen.

• Mars bis. tfelloes, follies, fellowes. tab.
P4

Ham.

Ham. The mobled queene.

Polo. That's good.

Play. Runne barefoote vp and downe, threatning the flames With bifon rhume, a clout vpon that head

Where late the diadem ftood, and for a robe,
About her lanck and all ore-teamed loynes,

A blancket in the alarme of feare caught vp.
Who this had feene, with tongue in venom fteept,
Gainst fortunes ftate would treafon haue pronounc'd;
But if the gods themfelues did fee her then,
When she saw Pirhus make malicious sport
In mincing with his fword her hufbands limmes,
The inftant burst of clamor that she made,
Vnleffe things mortall mooue them not at all,

Would haue made milch the burning eyes of heauen
And paffion in the gods.

Pol. Looke where he has not turned his collour, and has teares in's eyes prethee no more.

Ham. Tis well, Ile haue thee fpeake out the reft of this foone, good my lord will you fee the players well beftowed; doe you heare, let them be well vfed, for they are the abstract and breefe chronicles of the time; after your death you were better haue a bad epitaph then their ill report while you liue..

Pol. My lord, I will vfe them according to their defert.

Ham. Gods bodkin man, much better, vfe euery man after his defert, and who fhall fcape whipping, vfe them after your owne honour and dignity, the leffe they deferue the more merrit is in your bounty. Take them in.

Pol. Come firs.

Ha. Follow him friends, weele here a play to morrow; doft thou heare me old friend, can you play the murther of Gonzago?

Play. I my lord,

Ham.

Ham. Weele hau't* to morrow night, you could for need study a speech of some dofen lines, or fixteene lines, which I would fet downe and infert in't: could you not?

Play. I my lord.

Ham. Very well, follow that lord, and looke you mocke him not. My good friends, Ile leaue you till night, you are welcome to Elfoncure.

Rof. Good my lord.

Exeunt Pol. and players.

Ham. I fo, God buy to you, now I am alone,
O what a rogue and pefant flaue am I!
Is it not monftrous that this player heere
But in a fixion, in a dreame of paffion
Could force his foule fo to his owne conceit
That from her working all the visage wand,
Teares in his eyes, distraction in his aspect,
A broken voyce, and his whole function futing
With formes to his conceit; and all for nothing,
For Hecuba.

What's Hecuba to him, or he to her,

That he should weepe for her? what would he doe

Had he the motiue, and that for paffion

Exit t.

That I haue? he would drowne the stage with teares,
And cleaue the generall eare with horrid fpeech,
Make mad the guilty and appeale ‡ the free,
Confound the ignorant, and amaze indeed,
The very faculties of eyes and eares; yet I,
A dull and muddy mettled rafkall peake,
Like John-a-dreames, vnpregnant of my cause,
And can say nothing; no not for a king,
Vpon whose property and moft deare life,
A damn'd defeate was made: am I a coward,
Who calls me villaine, breakes my pate a croffe,

bate. + Exeunt.

Iappale.

Pluckes