dours herein, that some of the Lordes began to mislike the mater, and to smell foorth shrewed tokens, that he shoulde not be altogither cleare himselfe : but for so much as they were in that countrey, where hee had the whole rule, what by reason of his frendes and authoritie togither, they doubted to vtter what they thought till time and place shoulde better serue therevnto, and herevpon got them away euery man to his home. For the space of .vj. moneths togither after this haynous murder thus committed, there appeared no sunne by day, nor Moone by night in any parte of the realme, but stil was the skie couered with continual clowdes, and sometimes suche outragious windes arose with lightnings and tempestes, that the people were in great feare of present destruction.' (History of Scotland, pp. 206-209, ed. 1577.)

The sentence last quoted is clearly the origin of what Ross says in act ii. scene 4:

'By the clock, 'tis day,

And yet dark night strangles the travelling lamp,' &c.

The other natural portents mentioned in the same scene are borrowed from Holinshed's account of those which followed the murder of King Duffe. 'Monstrous sightes also that were seene within the Scottishe kingdome that yeare were these, horses in Lothian being of singuler beautie and swiftnesse, did eate their owne flesh, & would in no wise taste any other meate. In Angus there was a gentlewoman brought forth a childe without eyes, nose, hande, or foote. There was a Sparhauke also strangled by an Owle.' (p. 210.) These circumstances have been interwoven by the dramatist with Holinshed's account of Macbeth and Duncan, from which we now give all the passages which have any bearing upon the play.

'After Malcolme succeeded his Nephew Duncan, the sonne of his doughter Beatrice: for Malcolme had two daughters, ye one which was this Beatrice, being giuen in mariage vnto one Abbanath Crinen, a man of great nobilitie, and Thane of the Isles and west partes of Scotlande, bare of that mariage the foresayd Duncan: The other called Doada, was maried

vnto Synell the Thane of Glammis, by whom she had issue one Makbeth a valiant gentleman, and one that if he had not bene somewhat cruell of nature, might haue bene thought most worthie the gouernment of a realme. On the other parte, Duncan was so softe and gentle of nature, that the people wished the inclinations & maners of these two cousines to haue bene so tempered and enterchaungeably bestowed betwixt them, that where the one had to much of clemencie, and the other of crueltie, the meane vertue betwixt these twoo extremities, might haue reygned by indifferent particion in them bothe, so shoulde Duncan haue proued a worthy king, and Makbeth an excellent captaine.

'The beginning of Duncanes reigne was very quiet & peaceable, without any notable trouble, but after it was perceyued how negligent he was in punishing offenders, many misruled persons tooke occasion thereof to trouble the peace and quiet state of the common wealth, by seditious commotions whiche firste had theyr beginnings in this wise.

Banquho the Thane of Lochquhaber, of whom the house of the Stewardes is discended, the whiche by order of lynage hath nowe for a long time enioyed the crowne of Scotlande, euen till these our dayes, as he gathered the finaunces due to the king, and further punished somewhat sharpely suche as were notorious offenders, being assayled by a number of rebelles inhabiting in that countrey, and spoyled of the money and all other things, had muche ado to get away with life after he had receyued sundry grieuous woundes amongst them. Yet escaping theyr handes after he was somewhat recouered of his hurtes and was able to ride, he repayred to the courte, where making his complaint to the king in most earnest wise, he purchased at length that the offenders were sente for by a Sergeant at armes, to appeare to make aunswere vnto suche mater as shoulde be layde to theyr charge, but they augmenting theyr mischeeuous acte with a more wicked deede, after they had misused the messenger with sundry kindes of reproches, they finally slew him also.

'Then doubting not but for suche contemptuous de

meanour agaynst the kings regall authoritie, they shoulde be inuaded with all the power the king coulde make, Makdowalde one of great estimation amongst them making first a confederacie with his nearest frendes and kinsmen, tooke vpon him to be chiefe captayne of all suche rebelles, as woulde stande against the king, in maintenance of theyr grieuous offences lately committed against him. Many slanderous wordes also, & rayling taunts this Makdowald vttered against his prince, calling him a faynt harted milkesop, more meete to gouerne a sort of idle monkes in some cloyster, than to haue ye rule of suche valiant and hardy men of warre as the Scottes were.

'He vsed also suche subtile perswasions and forged allurements, that in a small time he had got togither a mightie power of men: for out of the westerne Isles, there came vnto him a great multitude of people, offering themselues to assist him in that rebellious quarell, and out of Ireland in hope of the spoyle came no small number of Kernes & Galloglasses offering gladly to serue vnder him, whither it shoulde please him to lead them. Makdowald thus hauing a mightie puyssance about him, encountred with suche of the kings people as were sent against him into Lochquhabir, and discomfiting them, by fine force tooke theyr captaine Malcolme, and after the end of the batayle smoote of his head.

'This ouerthrow beyng notified to the king, did put him in wonderfull feare, by reason of his small skill in warlyke affayres. Calling therfore his nobles to a counsell, willed them of their best aduise for the subduing of Makdowald and other the rebelles.

'Here in sundry heades (as it euer happeneth) being sundry opinions, whiche they vttered according to euery man his skill, at length Makbeth speaking muche against the kings softnesse, & ouer muche slacknesse in punishing offenders, whereby they had such time to assemble togither, he promised notwithstanding, if the charge were committed vnto him and to Banquho, so to order the mater, that the rebelles should be shortly vanquished and quite put downe, and that

C

not so much as one of them shoulde be founde to make resistance within the countrey.

‘And euen so caine it to passe: for being sente foorth with a newe power, at his entring into Lochquhaber, the fame of his comming put ye enimies in suche feare, that a great number of them stale secretely away from theyr captaine Makdowald, who neuerthelesse enforsed thereto, gaue batayle vnto Makbeth, with the residue whiche remained with him, but being ouercome and fleing for refuge into a castell (within the whiche hys wyfe and chyldren were enclosed,) at length when he saw he coulde neyther defend the hold any longer against his enimies, nor yet vpon surrender be suffered to depart with lyfe saued, he first slew his wife & children, and lastly himselfe, least if he had yeelded simply, he shoulde haue bene executed in most cruell wise for an example to other.

'Makbeth entring into the castel by the gates, as then set open, founde the carcase of Makdowald lying dead there amongst the residue of the slaine bodies, whiche when he behelde, remitting no peece of his cruell nature with that pitifull sight, he caused the head to be cut off, and set vpon a pooles ende, & so sent it as a present to the king who as then lay at Bertha.

'The headlesse trunke he commaunded to be hong vp vpon an high payre of gallowes. Them of the Westerne Isles, suyng for pardon in that they had ayded Makdowald in his trayterous enterpryse, he fined at great summes of money: and those whom he tooke in Lochquhabir, being come thither to beare armure agaynst the king, he put to execution.

'Herevpon the Iland men conceyued a deadly grudge towards him, calling him a couenant breaker, a bloudy tyrant, and a cruell murtherer of them, whom the kings mercie had pardoned. With whiche reprochfull woordes Makbeth being kindled in wrathfull yre against them, had passed ouer with an army into the Isles, to haue taken reuenge vpon them for theyr liberall talke, had he not bene otherwayes perswaded by some of his frendes, and partely pacified by giftes pre

sented vnto him on the behalfe of the Ilandmen, seeking to auoyde his displeasure.

'Thus was iustice and lawe restored againe to the old accustomed course by the diligent meanes of Makbeth. Immediatly wherevpon worde came that Sueno king of Norway was arriued in Fyfe with a puysant army to subdue the whole realme of Scotland.'

Here follows a short digression about Sueno and his three sons, and the division of England between Canute and Edmund Ironside. The narrative then proceeds :

'The crueltie of this Sueno was suche, that he neyther spared man, woman, nor childe, of what age, condition or degree so euer they were, whereof when king Duncane was certified, hee set all slouthfull and lingering delayes aparte, and began to assemble an army in moste speedy wise, like a right valiant Captayne: for oftentimes it happeneth, that a dull cowarde, and slouthfull person constrayned by necessitie, becommeth right hardie and actiue. Therefore when his

whole power was come togither, he deuided the same with three batayles. The firste was led by Makbeth, the seconde by Banquho, and the king himselfe gouerned in the mayne batayle or middlewarde, wherein were appoynted to attende his person the moste parte of all the residue of the Scottishe nobilitie.

'The army of Scottishmen beyng thus ordered, came vnto Culros, where encountring with the enimies, after a sore and cruell foughten batayle, Sueno remayned victorious, and Malcolme with his Scottes discomfited. Howbeit the Danes were so broken by this batayle, that they were not able to make long chase on theyr enimies, but kepte themselues all night in order of batayle, for doubte least ye Scots assembling togither againe, might haue set vpon them at some aduantage.

'On the morrow when the fieldes were discouered, and that it was perceyued how no enimies were to be founde

• See note on v. 6. 4.