Guild. We will provide ourselves: Ref. The fingle and peculiar life is bound, Which now goes too free-footed.. Both: We will hafte us. [Exeunt Gentlemen. Enter POLONIUS Pol. My Lord, he's gone to his mother's closet ;; Behind the arras I'll convey myself To hear the process. I'll warrant she'll tax him And, as you faid, and wifely was it faid, [home.. 'Tis meet that fome more audience than a mother (Since nature makes them partial,) fhould o'er-hear The fpeech, of vantage. Fare you well, iny Liege ;. on that play. Perhaps, too, in the Merry Wives of Windfor where all the editions read, Why, woman, your husband is in his old is again; we ought to correct, in his old lunes again; i. c. in his old fits of madnefs, frenzy, [Exit I'll call upon you ere you go to bed, (40) It hath the primal, eldeft curfe upon't; Afrother's murder- -Pray I cannot,] The laft verfe, 'tis evident, halts in the meafure; and, if I don't mistake, is as little lame in the fenfe too. Was a brother's murder the eldeft curfe? Surely it was rather the crime that was the caufe of this eldeft curfe. We have no aflistance, however, either to the fenfe or numbers from any of the copies. All the editions concur in the deficiency of a foot; but if we can both care the meafure, and help the meaning, without a prejudice to the Author, I think the concurrence of the printed copies fhould not be fufficient to forbid a conjecture. I have ventured at two fupplemental fyllables, as innocent in themfelves as neceffary to the purposes for which they are: introduced; That of a brother's murder. (47) Though inclination be] This line has lain under the fufpicion of many nice obfervers; and an ingenious gentle-man ftarted, at a heat, this very probable emendation: Though inclination be as fharp as 'twill. The variation from the traces of the letter is very minute, at with an apostrophe before it only being added, which might very eally have fipt out under the printer's hands; fo that the change will not be difputed, fuppofing there is a neceffity for it; which however is fubmitted to judgment. "lis certain the line, as it ftands in all the editions, has fo ftrongby the air of a flat tautology, that it may deserve a fhort comment, and to have the difference betwixt inclination and will afcertained. The word inclination, in its ufe with us as my friend Mr Warburton defines it to me) is taken in thefe three acceptations. First, in its exact philofophical fense, it fignifies the drawing or inclining the will to determine itfelf one certain way; according to this fignification the line is nonfenfe; and is the fame as to affirm, that the part is as big as the whole. In the next place, inch ation fignifies the wit, and then it is the most abfurd tautology. But, lafly, My ftronger guilt defeats my ftrong intent: And what's in prayer, but this two-fold force, Or pardoned being down? then I'll look up; Of those effects for which I did the murder, it fignifies a difpofition to do a thing, already determined of, with complacency and pleasure. And if this is, as it feems to be, the feafe of the word here, then the fentiment will be very clear and proper. For wil fignifying barely the deter mination of the mind to do a thing, the fenfe will be this Though the pleasure I take in this act, be as ftrong as the determination of my mind to perform its yet my funger guilt defeats my strong intent, &c.” Oh limed-foal, that, ftruggling to be free, Enter HAMLET. Ham. Now might I do it pat, now he is praying, And now I'll do't-and fo he goes to heaven.And fo am I revenged? that would be fcanned;. A villain kills my father, and for that 1, his fole fon, do this fame villain fend To heaven-0, this is hire and falary, not revenge.. With all his crimes broad blown, as Aufh as May;, Or in th' incestuous pleature of his bed; (48) Up, fword, and know thou a mre horrid time.] This. is a fophifticated reading, warranted by none of the copies of any authority. Mr Pope fays, I read conjectu-rally; a more horrid bent.. I do fo, and why? The two oldest Quartos, as well as the two elder Folios, read, a: inore horrid hent. But as there is no fuch English fubftantive, it feems very naturalto conclude, that, with the change of a single detter, our Aus thor's genuine word was bent, i. e drift, fcope, inclination, purpote, &c. I have proved his frequent ufe of this word, in my shakespeare Reftored; fo fall fpare the trouble of making the quotations over again here. I took notice there, that throwing my eye cafually over the fourth Folio edition, printed in 1685, I found my correction there anticipated At gaming, fwearing, or about some act Then trip him, that his-hecls may kick at heaven; King. My words fly up, my thoughts remain below; Words, without thoughts, never to Heaven go. [Exit. SCENE changes to the Queen's Apartment. Enter Queen and POLONIUS. Pol. He will come straight; look you lay home to him: Tell him, his pranks have been too broad to bear with.; And that your Grace hath fcreened, and food be-. tween Much heat and him. I'll filence me e'en here; Ham. [within.] Mother, mother, mother.- [Polonius hideshimfelf behind the Arras.. Enter HAMLET. [ed. Ham. Now, mother, what's the matter? I think myself obliged to repeat this confeffion, that I may not be accused of plagiarifm, for an emendation: which I had made before ever I faw a single page of that book. |