kats not the flats with more impetuous haste, . 1 an young Laertes, in a riotous head, L’tr-bears your officers. The rabble call him Lord

$ And as the world were now but to begin, Antiquity forgot, custom not known, 2 The ratifiers and props of every Ward Tney cry, “Chuse we Laertes for our King." Caps, hands, and tongues, applaud it to the Clouds; “ Laertes shall be King, Laertes King !" !

Queen. How chearfully on the false trail they cry! 3 Ch, this is counter, you false Danish dogs.

[Noise within.

Enter Laertes, with a Party at the Door:

King. The doors are broke.

? The ratifiers and props of With a his emendation, which

every word ;] The whole was in Tbeobald's' edition, Hanteneur of the context is fufficient

mer was not satisfied. It is into fhew, that this is a mistaken deed harsh. Hanmer transposes seading. What can antiquity the lines, and reads, and cutlom, being the props of They cry, Chufe we Laertes for words, have to do with the bu. our King; finess in hand ? Or what idea is The ratifiers and props of conveyed by it? Cerrainly the ev'ry word, poet wrole;

Caps, bands, and tongues, apThe raifers and props of ev'ry plaud it to the clouds. ward ;

I think the fault may be mended The messenger is complaining at less expence, by reading, that the riotous head had over Antiquity forgot, custom not borne the King's officers, and known, then fubjoins, that antiquity and The 1 arifiers and props of ev'ry custom were forgot, which were weal. the ratifiers and props of every That is, of every government, 'ward, i. e. of every one of those 3 Oh, this is counier, you false fecurities that nature and law Danish dogs.] Hounds run p'ace about the person of a King. counter, when they trace the trail All this is rational and conse. backwards. quential. WARBURTON,

Laer,

Laer. Where is this King ? Sirs ! stand you all

without.
All. No, let's come in.
Laer. I pray you, give me leave.
All. We will, we will.

(Exeunt. Laer. I thank you. Keep the door. Othou vile King, give me my

father. Queen. Calmly, good Laertes. (Laying bold on bim. Laer. That drop of blood that's calni, proclaims

me bastard; Cries cuckold to my father ; brands the harlot Ev'n here, between the chaste and unfmirch'd brows Of my true mother.

King. What is the cause, Laertes,
That thy Rebellion looks so giant-like?
_Let him go, Gertrude, do not fear our person.
There's such divinity doth hedge a King,
That treason can but peep to what it would,
Acts little of its will. Tell me, Laertes,
Why are you thus incens'd ? - Let him go, Gertrude.
Speak, man.

Laer. Where is my father?
King. Dead.
Qyeen. But not by him.
King. Let him demand his fill.
Laer. How came he dead? I'll not be juggled

with:
To hell, allegiance ! vows, to the blackest devil!
Conscience and grace, to the profoundest pit!
I dare damnation to this point I stand,
That both the worlds I give to negligence,
Let come, what comes; only I'll be reveng'd
Most throughly for my father.

King. Who shall stay you?

Laer. My will, not all the world ;
And for my means, I'll husband them so well,

far with little.
S4

King,

They shall

King. Good Laértés,
If you desire to know the certainty resona
Of your dear father, is't writ in your revenge,
That, sweep-stake, you will draw both friend and foe,
Winner and loser ?

Laer. None but his enemies.
King. Will you know them then?
Laer. To his good friends thus wide I'll ope my

arms,
And, like the kind life-rend'ring pelican,
Repast them with my blood,

King. Why, now you speak
Like a good child, and a true gentleman.
That I am guiltless of your father's death,
And am most sensible in grief for it,
It shall as level + to your judgment 'pear,
As day does to your eye,

Crowd within. Let her come in.
Laer. How now, what noise is that?

$ CE N E VII

.

Enter Ophelia, fantastically drest with straws and

flowers.

O heat, dry up my brains ! Tears, seven times falt,
Burn out the lense and virtue of mine eye !
By heav'n, thy madness shall be paid with weight,
Till our scale turn the beam. O rose of May;
Dear maid, kind fifter, sweet Ophelia !
O heav'ns, is't possible a young maid's wits
Should be as mortal as an old man's life?

4-to your judgment 'pear,] So to your judgement pierce, the quarto; the folio, and all the less intelligibly. latter editions, read,

& Nature

45 $ Nature is fine in love ; and, where 'tis fine,
$6 It sends some precious instance of itself
SF After the thing it loves.
Oph. They bore bim bare fac'd on the bier,

And on bis Grave rain'd many a tear ;

Fare you well, my dove ! Læer. Hadft thou thy wits, and didst persuade Rer

yenge,

rous, &c.

WARBI

5 Nature is FINE love; and quaint sentiment of Nature's falwhere 'tis FINE,

ling in love, is exactly in SbakeIt sends fome precious instance of Spear's manner, and is a thought itfelt

he appears

fond of. So in Roo After the thing it loves.] This meo and Julitt,, ction is reis unquestionably corrupt. I fup- presented as in love ; pose Shakespear wrote,

Affliction is enamour'd of the Nature is fal’n in love, and parts, wbere 'tis fal'n.

And ib'u art wedded to cala. The cause of Ophelia's madness mity. was grief, occafioned by the vio- Nay Death, a very unlikely sublence of her natural affection for ject one would think, is put

into her murder'd father ; her bro. a love fit; ther, therefore, with great force -I will believe of expreßion, says,

That unfubftantial death is amoNature is faln in love, To distinguish the passion of na These lines are not in the tural affection from the passion of quarto, and might have been love between the two sexes, i, eo omitted in the folio without

great Naturę, or natural affection is loss, for they are obscure and affalin in love. And as a person in fected; but, I think, they require love is accustomed to send the no emendation.

Love, fays Lamost precious of his jewels to the ertes, is che passion by which naperson beloved (for the loze- ture is most exalted and refined, tokens which young wenches in and as substances refined and sublove send to their sweethearts, istilised, easily obey any impuise, here alluded to) fo when Nature or follow any attraction, fome (says Laertes) falls in love, the part of nature, so purified and likewise fends her love-token to refined, Aies off after the attracthe obje&t beloved. But her most ting object, after the thing it loves, precious jewel is reason; she As into air the purer Spirits therefore fends that. And this he flow, gives as the cause of Ophelia's And separa!e

from their kindred madness, which he is here en dregs below, deavouring to account for. This So flew ber foul.

It could not move thus.
Oph. You must fing, down-a-down, and you call

bin a-down-a. 6 O how the wheel becomes it! it is the false steward that stole his master's daughter.

Laer. This nothing's more than matter.

Oph. ? There's rosemary, that's for remembrance. Pray, love, remember. And there's pansies, that's for thoughts.

YO3 96 Laer. A document in madness

, thoughts and re. membrance fitted,

Oph. There's fennel for you, and columbines, $ There's rue for you, and here's some for me. We

6 o how the wheel becomes tion which the Römish priests

it!] We should read weal. used to force the possessed to swalShe is now rambling on the bal- ' low down when they exorcised lad of the steward and his lord's them. Now these exorcisms being daughter. And in these words performed generally on a Sunday, speaks of the state he assumed. in the church before the whole

WARBURTON. congregation, is the reason why I do not see why weal is better he says, we call it herb of grace than wheel. The story alluded' o' Sundays. Sandys tells us that to I do not know ; but perhaps at Grand Cairo there is a species the lady stolen by the steward of rue much in request," with was reduced to Spin.

which the inhabitants perfume 7 There's rosemary, that's for themselves, not only as a prerimembrance; ant there's pansies, servative against infeájon, but as that's for thoughts.] There is pro- very powerful againf evil spirits. bably fome mythology in the And the cabalistic Gaffarel prechoice of these herbs, but I can tends to have discovered the reanot explain it. Panfies is for son of its virtue, La femence de thou his, because of its name, Ruë eft fuiae comme une Croix, & Penfees; but why rosemary indie s'eft paraventure la cause qu'elle a cates remembrance, except that tant de verlu contre les possédez, & it is an ever-green, and carried que l'Eglife s'en sert en les exorat funerals, I have not discovered. cisant. It was on the same prin

8 There's rue for you, and here's ciple that the Greeks called fulo fone for me. We

may call it herb phur, Ozily, because of its use in of grace o' Sundays :) Herb of their fuperftitious purgations by grace is the name the country fire. Which too the Romih priests people give to Rue. And the employ to fumigate in their reason i, because that herb was exorcisms; and on that account a principal ingredient in the po- hallow or consecrate it. WARB.