Dio. Come, tell me whose it was. If souls guide vows, if vows be sanctimony, Cres. 'Twas one's that loved me better than you If sanctimony be the god's delight, will. But, now you have it, take it. Dio. Dio. To-morrow will I wear it on my helm ; It should be challeng'd. This was not she. O madness of discourse, Cres. Well, well, 'tis done, 'tis past ;-And yet Admits no orifice for a point, as subtle it is not; I will not keep my word. Dio. Why then, farewell; Thou never shalt mock Diomed again. As is Arachne's broken woof, to enter. Cres. You shall not go:-One cannot speak a The bonds of heaven are slipp'd, dissolv'd, and word, But it straight starts you. Dio. What, shall I come? the hour? Ay, come :-O Jove! Do come :-I shall be plagu'd. Farewell till then. Cres. Good night. I pr'ythee, come. [Exit Diomedes. [Exit Cressida. Ther. A proof of strength she could not publish more, Unless she said, My mind is now turn'd whore. It is. Tro. That doth invert the attest of eyes and ears; Was Cressid here? Ulyss. I cannot conjure, Trojan. Most sure she was. Tro. Why, my negation" hath no taste of mad ness. Ulyss. Nor mine, my lord: Cressid was here but now. Tro. Let it not be believ'd for womanhood! Tro. Nothing at all, unless that this were she. loos'd; And with another knot, five-finger-tied, Ulyss. May worthy Troilus be half attach'd Ther. He'll tickle it for his concupy." Let all untruths stand by thy stain'd name, Farewell, revolted fair!--and, Diomed, Tro. Accept distracted thanks. [Exeunt Troilus, Æneas, and Ulysses. Ther. 'Would, I could meet that rogue Diomed! I would croak like a raven; I would bode, I would bode. Patroclus will give me any thing for the intelligence of this whore: the parrot will not do more for an almond, than he for a commodious drab. Lechery, lechery; still, wars and lechery; nothing else holds fashion: A burning devil take [Exit. Where is my brother Hector? And. Here, sister; arm'd, and bloody in intent: Consort with me in loud and dear petition, Pursue we him on knees; for I have dream'd Of bloody turbulence, and this whole night Come, Hector, come, go back; Thy wife hath dream'd; thy mother hath had visions; Cassandra doth foresee; and I myself Hath nothing been but shapes and forms of To tell thee-that this day is ominous: slaughter. Cas. O, it is true. Hect. Begone, I say: the gods have heard me swear. Cas. The gods are deaf to hot and peevish' vows; And. O! be persuaded: Do not count it holy Cas. It is the purpose that makes strong the vow; Hect. Hold you still, I say ; Mine honour keeps the weather of my fate: Life every man holds dear: but the dear man Holds honour far more precious dear" than life. Enter Troilus. How now, young man? mean'st thou to fight today? And. Cassandra, call my father to persuade. I am to-day i'the vein of chivalry: Tro. Brother, you have a vice of mercy in you, Which better fits a lion, than a man. Hect. What vice is that, good Troilus? chide me for it. Tro. When many times the captive Grecians fall, Even in the fan and wind of your fair sword, You bid them rise, and live. Hect. O, 'tis fair play. Tro. Fool's play, by heaven, Hector. Hect. How now? how now? Tro. For the love of all the gods, Let's leave the hermit Pity with our mother; And when we have our armours buckled on, The venom'd vengeance ride upon our swords; Spur them to ruthful work, rein them from ruth. Hect. Fie, savage, fie! Tro. Hector, then 'tis wars. Hect. Troilus, I would not have you fight to-day. Tro. Who should withhold me?" Not fate, obedience, nor the hand of Mars Beckoning with fiery truncheon my retire; Not Priamus and Hecuba on knees, Their eyes, o'ergalled with recourse of tears; (2) Valuable. (1) Foolish. (3) Put off. Therefore, come back. Pri. But thou shalt not go. Hect. I must not break my faith. And. [Exit Andromache. Tro. This foolish, dreaming, superstitious, girl, Makes all these bodements. Cas. O farewell, dear Hector. Look, how thou diest! look, how thy eye turns pale! Look, how thy wounds do bleed at many vents! Cas. Farewell.-Yet, soft:-Hector, I take my leave; [Ex. Thou dost thyself and all our Troy deceive. [Exeuni severally Priam and Hector. Alarums. Tro. They are at it; hark! Proud Diomed, be lieve, I come to lose my arm, or win my sleeve. As Troilus is going out, enter, from the other side, Pan. Do you hear, my lord? do you hear? Pan. Here's a letter from yon' poor girl. Pan. A whoreson ptisic, a whoreson rascally ptisic so troubles me, and the foolish fortune of this girl; and what one thing, what another, that I shall leave you one o'these days: And I have a rheum in mine eyes too; and such an ache in my bones, that, unless a man were cursed, I cannot tell what to think on't.-What says she there! Tro. Words, words, mere words, no matter from the heart; [Tearing the letter. The effect doth operate another way. Go, wind, to wind, there turn and change to- Appals our numbers; haste we, Diomed, gether. Enter Nestor. My love with words and errors still she feeds; But edifies another with her deeds. [Exe. severally. Nest. Go, bear Patroclus' body to Achilles; SCENE IV.-Between Troy and the Grecian And bid the snail-pac'd Ajax arm for shame.camp. Alarums: Excursions. Enter Thersites. There is a thousand Hectors in the field: Ther. Now they are clapper-clawing one another; Now here he fights on Galathe his horse, I'll go look on. That dissembling abominable var- And there lacks work; anon, he's there afoot, let, Diomed, has got that same scurvy doating fool- And there they fly, or die, like scaled sculls ish young knave's sleeve of Troy there, in his helm: Before the belching whale; then is he yonder, I would fain see them meet; that that same young And there the strawy Greeks, ripe for his edge, Trojan ass, that loves the whore there, might send Fall down before him, like the mower's swath that Greekish whoremaster villain, with the sleeve, Here, there, and every where, he leaves, and takes ; back to the dissembling luxurious drab, on a sleeve- Dexterity so obeying appetite, Enter Ulysses. Ulyss. O courage, courage, princes! great less errand. O'the other side, The policy of those That what he will, he does; and does so much, crafty swearing rascals,—that stale old mouse-eaten That proof is call'd impossibility. dry cheese, Nestor; and that same dog-fox, Ulysses,-is not proved worth a blackberry:-They set me up, in policy, that mongrel cur, Ajax, against that dog of as bad a kind, Achilles: and now is the cur Ajax prouder than the cur Achilles, and Is arming, weeping, cursing, vowing vengeance: will not arm to-day: whereupon the Grecians begin Patroclus' wounds have rous'd his drowsy blood, to proclaim barbarism, and policy grows into an ill Together with his mangled Myrmidons, opinion. Soft! here come sleeve, and t'other. That noseless, handless, hack'd and chipp'd, come to him, Enter Diomedes, Troilus following. Tro. Fly not; for, should'st thou take the river I would swim after. Dio. Thou dost miscall retire: I do not fly; but advantageous care Withdrew me from the odds of multitude: Have at thee! Ther. Hold thy whore, Grecian!-now for thy whore, Trojan!-now the sleeve, now the sleeve! [Exeunt Troilus and Diomedes, fighting. Hec. What art thou, Greek? art thou for Hec- Art thou of blood, and honour? Ther. No, no:-I am rascal; a scurvy railing knave; a very filthy rogue. Hect. I do believe thee ;-live. [Exit. Ther. God-a-mercy, that thou wilt believe me; SCENE V.-The same. Enter Diomedes and a Dio. Go, go, my servant, take thou Troilus' horse; I go, my lord. (Exit Servant. Crying on Hector. Ajax hath lost a friend, Engaging and redeeming of himself, Enter Ajax. Ajax. Troilus! thou coward Troilus! Nest. So, so, we draw together. [Exit. Ay, there, there. Achil. SCENE VI.-Another part of the field. Enter Ajax. Troilus, thou coward Troilus, show thy Enter Diomedes. Dio. I would correct him. my office, Ere that correction:-Troilus, I say! what, Troilus! Tro. O traitor Diomed!-turn thy false face, thou And pay thy life thou ow'st me for my horse! Ajax. I'll fight with him alone: stand, Diomed. Enter Achilles. Achil. Now do I see thee: Ha!-Have at thee, Hector. Hect. Pause, if thou wilt. Achil. I do disdain thy courtesy, proud Trojan. Be happy, that my arms are out of use: My rest and negligence befriend thee now, But thou anon shalt hear of me again; Till when, go seek thy fortune. Hect. Fare thee well:I would have been much more a fresher man, Had I expected thee.-How now, my brother? Re-enter Troilus. Tro. Ajax hath ta'en Æneas; Shall it be? No, by the flame of yonder glorious heaven, He shall not carry1 him; I'll be taken too, Or bring him off:-Fate, hear me what I say! I reck2 not though I end my life to-day. Enter one in sumptuous armour. [Exit. [Exit. Enter Achilles and Myrmidons. Achil. Look, Hector, how the sun begins to set; How ugly night comes breathing at his heels: Even with the veil and dark'ning of the sun, To close the day up, Hector's life is done. Hect. I am unarm'd: forego this vantage, Greek. Achil. Strike, fellows, strike; this is the man I seek. [Hector falls. So, Ilion, fail thou next! now, Troy, sink down ; Here lies thy heart, thy sinews, and thy bone.— On, Myrmidons; and cry you all amain, Achilles hath the mighty Hector slain. [A retreat sounded. Hark! a retreat upon our Grecian part. Myr. The Trojan trumpets sound the like, my lord. Dio. The bruit is-Hector's slain, and by Achilles. Achilles! Hector's slain! Achilles ! Great Hector was as good a man as he. Ajax. If it be so, yet bragless let it be; Agam. March patiently along:-Let one be sent To pray Achilles see us at our tent. If in his death the gods have us befriended, Great Troy is ours, and our sharp wars are ended. [Exeunt, marching. SCENE VIII.-The same. Enter Menelaus SCENE XI.-Another part of the field. Enter and Paris, fighting: then Thersites. Ther. The cuckold and the cuckold-maker are at it: Now, bull! now, dog! 'Loo, Paris, 'loo! now my double-henned sparrow! 'Loo, Paris, 'loo! The bull has the game:'ware horns, ho! [Exeunt Paris and Menelaus. Enter Margarelon. Mar. Turn, slave, and fight. Mar. A bastard son of Priam's. Ther. I am a bastard too; I love bastards: I am a bastard begot, bastard instructed, bastard in mind, bastard in valour, in every thing illegitimate. One bear will not bite another, and wherefore should one bastard? Take heed, the quarrel's most ominous to us: if the son of a whore fight for a whore, he tempts judgment: Farewell, bastard. Mar. The devil take thee, coward! SCENE IX.-Another part of the field. Hector. [Exeunt. Enter Hect. Most putrified core, so fair without, Thy goodly armour thus hath cost thy life. Now is my day's work done; I'll take good breath: Rest, sword; thou hast thy fill of blood and death! [Puts off his helmet, and hangs his shield behind him. (1) Prevail over. (2) Care. (3) Burst. (4) Employ. (5) Take not this advantage. (6) An arbitrator at athletic games. Eneas and Trojans. Ene. Stand, ho! yet are we masters of the field: Never go home; here starve we out the night. Enter Troilus. Tro. Hector is slain. All. Hector ?-the gods forbid! Tro. He's dead; and at the murderer's horse's tail, In beastly sort, dragg'd through the shameful field.— Sit, gods, upon your thrones, and smile at Troy ! Frown on, you heavens, effect your rage with speed! say, at once let your brief plagues be mercy, And linger not our sure destructions on! I Ene. My lord, you do discomfort all the host. I do not speak of flight, of fear, of death; Tro. You understand me not, that tell me so: But dare all imminence, that gods and men Address their dangers in. Hector is gone! Let him, that will a screech-owl aye' be call'd, Who shall tell Priam so, or Hecuba? Go in to Troy, and say there-Hector's dead: There is a word will Priam turn to stone; Make wells and Niobes of the maids and wives, Cold statues of the youth; and, in a word, Scare Troy out of itself. But march, away: Hector is dead; there is no more to say. Stay yet;-You vile abominable tents, Thus proudly pight10 upon our Phrygian plains, Let Titan rise as early as he dare, As many as be here of panders' hall, I'll through and through you!-And thou, great-Your eyes, half out, weep out at Pandar's fall: siz'd coward! No space of earth shall sunder our two hates; As Troilus is going out, enter from the other side, Pan. But hear you, hear you! Tro. Hence, broker lackey! ignomy' and shame Pursue thy life, and live aye with thy name! [Exit Troilus. Or, if you cannot weep, yet give some groans, [Exit. This play is more correctly written than most of Pan. A goodly med'cine for my aching bones!-Shakspeare's compositions, but it is not one of those O world! world! world! thus is the poor agent in which either the extent of his views or elevation despised! O traitors and bawds, how earnestly are of his fancy is fully displayed. As the story aboundyou set a' work, and how ill requited! Why shoulded with materials, he has exerted little invention; our endeavour be so loved, and the performance so but he has diversified his characters with great loathed? what verse for it? what instance for it?-variety, and preserved them with great exactness. Let me see: Full merrily the humble-bee doth sing, His vicious characters disgust, but cannot corrupt, for both Cressida and Pandarus are detested and contemned. The comic characters seem to have been the favourites of the writer: they are of the superficial kind, and exhibit more of manners, than nature; but they are copiously filled, and powerfully impressed. Shakspeare has in his story followed, for the greater part, the old book of Caxton, which was then very popular; but the character of Ignominy. Thersites, of which it makes no mention, is a proof Canvass hangings for rooms, painted with that this play was written after Chapman had pubemblems and mottoes. lished his version of Homer. 83 (2) Ever. JOHNSON. |