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Hor. What is it you would fee?

O proud

If aught of woe or wonder, ceafe your fearch.
Fort. This quarry cries on havoc.
Death! (76)

What feaft is toward in thy infernal cell,

That thou fo many princes at a fhot
So bloodily hast struck?

Amb. The fight is difmal,

And our affairs from England come too late: -
The ears are fenfeless that should give us hearing;
To tell him, his commandment is fulfilled,
That Rofincrantz and Guildenftern are dead:
Where fhould we have our thanks?

Hor. Not from his mouth,

Had it th' ability of life to thank you:

He never gave commandment for their death. (77) But fince fo full upon this bloody queftion,

You from the Polack wars, and you from England, Are here arrived; give order, that these bodies, High on a flage be placed to the view,

And let me fpeak to th' yet unknowing world, How these things came about. So thall you hear Of cruel, bloody, and unnatural acts;

Of accidental judgments, cafual slaughters;

(76)

-Oh, pr.ul Death!

What feat is toward in thy eternal cell,] This epithet, I think, has no great propriety here. I have chose the reading of the old Quarto editions, infernal. This communicates an image fuitable to the circumftance of the baver which Fortinbras looks on and would reprefent in a light of houer. Upon the fight of fo many dead bodies, he exclaims against Death, as an execrable, riotous destroyer, and as preparing to make a favage and hellifh feast.

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(77) He never gave commandment for their death. We muft either believe the Poet had forgot himself with regard to the circumftance of Rofincrantz and Guildenstern's dea.. we must understand him thus; that he no otherways gave a command for their deaths, than in putting a change upon the tenour of the King's commiflion, and warding off the fatal fentence from his own head.

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Of deaths put on by cunning, and forced caufe;
And, in this upfhot, purposes mistook,
Fallen on th' inventors' heads.

Truly deliver.

Fort. Let us hafte to hear it,

All this can I

And call the Nobleffe to the audience.

For me, with forrow 1 embrace my fortune;
I have fome rights of memory in this kingdom,
Which now to claim my vantage doth invite me.

Hor. Of that I shall have also cause to speak, And from his mouth whofe voice will draw on But let this fame be presently performed, [more: (78) Even while mens minds are wild, left more mifOn plots and errors happen.

Fort. Let four captains

Bear Hamlet, like a foldier, to the stage;
For he was likely, had he been put on,

[chance

To have proved moft royally. And for his paffage, The foldier's mufic, and the rites of war

Speak loudly for him------

Take up the body: fuch a fight as this
Becomes the field, but here fhews much amifs.
Go, bid the foldiers fhoot.

[Exeunt, marching: after which, a peal of
Ordnance is hot off.

(78) And from his mouth, whofe voice will draw no more:] This is the reading of the old Quartos, but certainly a miftaken one. We fay, a man will no more draw breath, but that a man's voice will draw no more is, I believe, an expreffion without any authority. 1 chufe to efpouse the reading of the elder Folio,

And from his mouth, whofe voice will draw on more. And this is the Poet's meaning. Hamlet, just before his death, had faid;

But I do prophefy, the election lights

On Fortinbras; he has my dying voice;

So tell him, &c.

Accordingly, Horatio here delivers that meffage, and ver, justly infers that Hamlet's voice will be feconded by others' and procure them in favour of Fortinbras's fucceffion.

OTHELLO,

LO

THE

MOOR of VENICE.

P 2

Dramatis Perfonæ.

DUKE of Venice.

Brabantio, a noble Venetian.

Gratiano, Brother to Brabantio.

Lodovico, Knfman to Brabantio and Gratiano.
Othello, the Moor, General for the Venetians in Cyprus.
Caffio, his Lieutenant-general.

13go, Standard-bearer to Othello.

Kodorigo, a foolish Gentleman, in love with Defdemona. Montano, the Moor's Predeceffor in the Government of Cyprus. Clown, Servant to the Moor.

Herald.

Defdemona, Daughter to Brabantio, and Wife to Othello.
Emilia, Wife to lago.

Bianca, Courtezan, Mistress to Caffio.

Officers, Gentlemen, Mefingers, Musicians, Sailors and Attendants ́SCENE, for the First Act, in Venice; during the reft of the Play, in Cyprus..

ACT I.

SCENE, a Street in Venice.

Enter RODORIGO and IAGO.

RODORIGO.

EVER tell me, I take it much unkindly, That thou, Jago, who haft had my purfe, As if the strings were thine, fhouldst know of this.

(1) Othello. The ground-work of this play is built on a novel of Cinthio Giraldi, (Dec. 3. Nov. 7.) who feems to have designed his tale a document to young ladies against difproportioned marriage; di non fe accompagnare con buomo, cui la natura et il cielo, et il modo della vita difgiunge da noi: That they fhould not link themselves to fuch, against whom Nature, Providence, and a different way of living have interpofed a bar. Our Poet inculcates no fuch moral; but rather, that a woman may fall in love with the virtues and fhining qualities of a man, and therein overlook the difference of complexion and colour. Mr Rymer has run riot against the conduct, manners, fentiments, and diction of this play; but in such a strain, that one is moved rather to laugh at the freedom and coarfenefs of his raillery, than provoked to be downright angry at his cenfures. To take a fhort fample of his criticism;- Shakespeare in this play calls 'em the fuper-fubtle Venetians; yet examine thoroughly the tragedy, there is nothing in the noble Defdemona that is not below any country chambermaid with us. And the account he gives of their noblemen and fenate, can only be calculated for the latitude of Gotham. The character of the Venetian state is to employ ftrangers in their wars; but fhall a poet thence fancy, that they will fet a negro to be their general? or truft a Moor to defend them against the Turks? With us a black-a-moor might rife to be a trumpeter; but Shakespeare would not have him lefs than a lieutenant-general. With us a Moor might marry fome little

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