They bear the mandate, they must fweep my way; MA Hoift with his own petard; and it shall go hard, [Exit Hamlet, tugging in Polonius. ACT IV. SCENE I, A Royal Apartment. Enter King and Queen, with Rofincrantz, and Guil denftern. KING. HERE's matter in these fighs; these profound heaves THERE You must tranflate; 'tis fit, we understand them, paufe is made at a time when *This play is printed in the R 4 Queen. Queen. Beftow this place on us a little while. [To Rof. and Guild, who go out. Ah, my good Lord, what have I feen to-night? Queen. Mad as the feas, and wind, when both con tend Which is the mightier. In his lawlefs fit, dost King. O heavy deed! It had been fo with us had we been there. His liberty is full of threats to all, To you yourself, to us, to every one. Alas! how fhall this bloody deed be answer'd? Should have kept short, restrain'd, and3 out of haunt, Shews itself pure. He weeps for what is done. The fun no fooner fhall the mountains touch, Both countenance and excufe. Ho! Guildenstern! 3 -out of haunt,] I would rather read, out of harm. • —like fome ore] Shakespeare A Enter Rofincrantz and Guildenstern. Friends both, go join you with fome further aid And from his mother's closet hath he drag'd him. [Exeunt Rof. and Guild. Come, Gertrude, we'll call up our wifest friends, And let them know both what we mean to do, And what's untimely done. For, haply, Slander, 5 Whofe whisper o'er the world's diameter, As level as the cannon to his blank, Transports its poison'd fhot; may miss our Name, 5 Whose whisper o'er the world's diameter, As level as the cannon to his blank, Tranfports its poifon'd fhot, may mifs our name, And hit the woundless air. O, come away!] Mr. Pope takes notice, that I replace fome verfes that were imperfect, (and, the' of a modern date, feem to be genuine) by inferting two words. But to fee, what an accurate and faithful collator he is; I produced these verses in my SHAKESPEARE restored, from a quarto edition of Hamlet, printed in 1637, and happened to fay, that they had not the authority of any earlier date in print, that I knew of, than that quarto. Upon the ftrength of this Mr. Pope comes and calls the lines modern, tho' they were in the quartos of 1605 and 1611, which I had not then feen, but both of which Mr. Pope pretends to have collated. The verses carry the very stamp of Shakespeare upon them. The coin, indeed, has been clipt from our firft receiving it; but it is not fo diminished, but that with a small affiftance we may hope to make it pass current. I am far from affirming, that, by inferting the words, For, haply, Slander, I. have given the poet's very words; but the fupplement is such as the fentiment naturally feems to demand. The poet has the fame thought, concerning the diffufive pow'rs of flander, in another of his plays. No, 'tis flander ; Whofe edge is sharper that the fword, whofe tongue Out-venoms all the worms of Nile, whofe breath Rides on the polling winds, and doth bely All corners of the world. Cymbeline. THEOBALD. And And hit the woundless air.-O, come away; SCENE II. Enter Hamlet. Ham. Safely ftowed. Gentlemen within Hamlet! Lord Hamlet!, Ham. What noife? who calls on Hamlet ? Oh, here they come. Enter Rofincrantz, and Guildenstern. [Exeunt. い Rof. What have you done, my Lord, with the dead body? Ham. Compounded it' with duft, whereto 'tis kin, Rof. Tell us where 'tis, that we may take it thence, And bear it to the chapel. Ham. Do not believe it. Ham. That I can keep your counfel, and not mine own. Befides, to be demanded of a fpunge, what replication fhould be made by the son of a King? Rof. Take you me for a fpunge, my Lord? Ham. Ay, Sir, that fokes up the King's countenance, his rewards, his authorities. But fuch officers do the King beft fervice in the end; he keeps them, ' like an apple, in the corner of his jaw; firft mouth'd, to be laft fwallow'd. When he needs what you have glean'd, it is but squeezing you, and, fpunge, you Thall be dry again. A Rof. I understand you not, my Lord. Ham. I am glad of it; a knavifh fpeech fleeps in a foolish ear. Rof. My Lord, you must tell us where the body is, and go with us to the King t Ham. The body is with the King, but the King is not with the body. The King is a thingGuil. A thing, my Lord? Ham. Of nothing. Bring me to him. Hide fox, and all after. [Exeunt. SCEN E III. Enter King. King. I've fent to feek him, and to find the body. Who like not in their judgment, but their eyes: Or not at all. The body is with the King,] This anfwer I do not comprehend. Perhaps it fhould be, The body is not with the King, for the King is not with the body. be 8 Of nothing.] Should it not read, Or nothing? When the courtiers remark, that Hamlet has contemptuoufly called the 9 Hide fox,] There is a play among children called Hide fox, and all after. HANMER. Enter |