Thy natural magick, and dire property,

On wholfome life ufurp immediately.

[Pours the poifon into his ears. Har. He poifons him i'th' garden for's eftate; his name's Gonzago; the story is extant, and writ in choice Italian. You shall fee anon how the murderer gets the love of Gonzago's wife.

Ob. The King rifes.

Ham. What, frighted with falfe fire!

Queer. How fares my Lord?

Pol. Give o'er the Play.

King. Give me fome light. Away!

All. Lights, lights, lights!

Manent Hamlet and Horatio..

Ham Why, let the ftrucken deer go weep,

The hart ungalled play;

For fome must watch, whilft fome must sleep;

So runs the world away.

[Exeunt.

World not this, Sir, and a foreft of Feathers, (if the rest of my fortunes turn Turk with me) (42) with two

i. e. With her curfe, execration. So, in Timon; Take thou that too, with multiplying lanns. 2 Henry VI.

Ay, ev'ry joint should feem to curfe and bann.
And again;

You had me bann, and will you bid me leave?
&c. &e &c.

provincial

Ibid.

Befides, words of execration have been always practis'd in magical operations. So Horace, to give a fingle instance,

Canidia, parce vocibus tandem facris.

Upon which words Porphyrion has given us this fhort comment. Dial gus nunc de facris, quid facrum religiofum & execrabile fignificat,

Hermannus Figulus thus explains it; Vecibus facris.] Malis cantibus, verlis magicis. And Badius Afcentius, ftill nearer to our purpose; Sacris} id eft, diris & imprecationibus in me alftine.

(42) With two provincial rofes en my rayed shoes,

Get me a felleu fhip in a city of players, Sir?] I once fufpected, that we ought to read, raised shoes. By a forest of feathers, he certainly alludes to the plumes worn by the ftage-heroes; as, by raised fhoes, he would to their bufkins; the cotburni, as they were call'd by the Rmans, which were as much higher in the heel than other common

fhoes,

provincial rofes on my rayed fhoes, get me a fellowhip in a cry of Players, Sir?

Hor. Half a share.

Ham. A whole one, I.

For thou dost know, oh Damon dear, "This realm difmantled was

"Of Jove himfelf, and now reigns here “A very, very,- (43) Paddock.

Hora

fhoes, as the chioppines worn by the Venetians are. It was the known custom of the tragedians of old, that they might the nearer refemble the heroes they perfonated, to make themselves as tall in ftature, and by an artificial help to found, to speak as big as they poffibly could. To both thefe Horace has alluded;

-magnumque loqui, nitique cothurno. And Lucian, defcribing a tragedian,. calls him ärgates qu€áraig úfnaoïs iπoxúmave, a fellow carried upon bigh shoes; and these were rais'd to fuch a degree, that the f me author calls one, who had pull'd them off, xalala's drò rwviμbádav, defcending from his bukins. But, perhaps, rayed fhoes may have been our Author's expreflion; i. e. riped, Spangled, enrich'd with fome fhining ornaments: bracteatr calcei, fhoes variegated with rayes of gold. Bractea, a ray of gold, or any other metal. LITTLETON. A ray of gold, fueille d'or. CoTGRAVE.In a city of players. Thus Mr. Pope, with some of the wolfer editions: but we must read, cry, with the better copies; i by. in the vote and fuffrage of a company of players.

Troilus and Creffida.

The cry went once for thee.

Coriolanus.

You and your cry

Henry IV.

For all the country in a general voice
Cry'd hate upon him.

(43) A very very peacock.] The old copies have it pairock, paioske, and pajocke. I fubstituted paddock, as nearest to the traces of the corrupted reading. I have, as Mr. Poge fays,, been willing to fubftitute any thing in the place of his peacock. He thinks a fable alluded to, of the birds chufing a king; instead of the eagle, a peacock. I fuppofe, he must mean the fable of Barlandus, in which it is faid, the birds, being weary of their state of anarchy,, mov'd for the fetting up of a king: and the peacock was elected on account of his gay fea bers, But, with fubmiffion, in this paffage of our Shakespeare, there is not the leaft mention made of the eagle in antithesis to the peatuak ;, and H &

Hor. You might have rhym'd.

Ham. Oh, good Horatio, I'll take the Ghoft's word for a thousand pounds. Didft perceive?

Hor. Very well, my Lord.

Ham. Upon the talk of the poisoning?
Hor. I did very well note him.

Enter Rofincrantz and Guildenstern.

Ham. Oh, ha! come, fome mufick: Come, the reFor if the King like not the comedy;

Why, then, belike, he likes it not, perdy.

Come, fome mufick.

[corders.

Guil. Good my Lord, vouchfafe me a word with you. Ham. Sir, a whole history.

Guil. The King, Sir

Ham. Ay, Sir, what of him?

Guil. Is, in his retirement, marvellous diftemper'dHam. With drink, Sir?

Guil. No, my Lord, with choler.

it must be by a very uncommon figure, that Jove himself stands in the place of his bird. I think, Hamlet is fetting his father's and uncle's characters in contrast to each other: and means to say, that by his father's death the state was ftripp'd of a godlike monarch, and that now in his ftead reign'd the most despicable poifenous animal that could be a meer paddock, or toad. Pao, bufo, rubeta major; a toad. Belgis, Patte. Vid. Somnerum, Minshew, &c. Our Author was very well acquainted with the word, and has used it more

than once.

Macbeth.

ft Witch. I come, Grimalkin.

2d Witch. Paddock calls.

The witches are fuppos'd to hear their fpirits call to them in the fcreaming of a cat, and the croaking of a toad. But what makes it the more probable that this term fhould be used bere, Hamlet, again, afrerwards fpeaking of his uncle to the queen, among other contemptuous additions, gives him this very appellation.

Twere good, you let him know:
For who that's but a Queen, fair, fober, wife,
Would from a paddock, from a bat, a gibbe,
Such dear concernings hide?

I had formerly propos'd other conjectures; but, I think, I may venture to ftand by this. Sub judice lis eft. If it has reafon and probability on its fide, Mr. Pope's legendary peacock muft e'en be content to wait for another election,

Ham.

Ham. Your wisdom should shew itself more rich, to fignify this to his Doctor: for, for me to put him to his purgation, would, perhaps, plunge him into more choler.

Gui. Good my Lord, put your difcourfe into fome frame, and start not fo wildly from my affair. Ham. I am tame, Sir;-pronounce.

Gail. The Queen your mother, in moft great affliction of fpirit, hath fent me to you.

Ham. You are welcome.

Guil. Nay, good my Lord, this Courtefy is not of the right Breed. If it fhall please you to make me a wholesome answer, I will do your mother's commandment; if not, your pardon, and my return shall be the end of my bufinefs.

Ham. Sir, I cannot.

Guil. What, my Lord?

Ham. Make you a wholesome anfwer: my wit's difeas'd. But, Sir, fuch anfwer as I can make, you shall command; or, rather, as you fay, my mothertherefore no more but to the matteryou fay

-my mother,

Ro. Then thus fhe fays; your behaviour hath struck her into amazement, and admiration.

Ham. Oh wonderful fon, that can fo aftonish a mother! But is there no fequek at the heels of this mother's admiration?

Rof. She defires to speak with you in her closet, ere you go to bed.

Ham. We shall obey, were fhe ten times our mother. Have you any further trade with us?

Rof. My Lord, you once did love me.

Ham. So I do ftill, by these pickers and stealers. Rof. Good my Lord, what is your cause of diftemper? you do, furely, bar the door of your own liberty, if you deny your griefs to your friend.

Ham. Sir, I lack advancement.

Rof. How can that be, when you have the voice of the King himself, for your fucceffion in Denmark?

Hams

Ham. Ay, but while the grafs grows the Proverb is fomething mufty.

Enter one, with a Recorder.

Oh, the Recorders; let me fee one. To withdraw with you-why do you go about to recover the wind of me, as if you would drive me into a toile?

Gul. Oh my Lord, if my duty be too bold, my love is too unmannerly.

Ham. I do not well understand that. Will you play upon this pipe?

Guil. My Lord, I cannot.

Ham. I pray you.

Guil. Believe me, I cannot.

Ham. I do befeech you.

Gail, I know no touch of it, my Lord.

Ham. 'Tis as eafy as lying; govern thefe ventiges with your fingers and thumb, give it breath with your mouth, and it will difcourfe mott eloquent mufick. Look you, thefe are the ftops.

Guil. But thefe cannot I command to any utterance of harmony; I have not the skill.

Ham. Why, look you now, how unworthy a thing. you make of me; you would play upon me, you would feem to know my ftops; you would pluck out the heart of my myftery: you would found me from my lowest note, to the top of my compafs; and there is much mufick, excellent voice, in this little organ, yet cannot you make it fpeak. Why, do you think, that I am easier to be play'd on than a pipe? call me what inftrument you will, though you can fret me, you cannot play upon me. God bless you, Sir.

Enter Polonius.

Pol. My Lord, the Queen would fpeak with you, and prefently,

Hm. Do you fee yonder cloud, that's almoft in fhape of a Camel?

Pol. By the mafs, and it's like a Camel, indeed.