Having ever seen in the prenominate crimes
The youth you breathe of guilty, be assur'd
He closes with you in this consequence;
"Good sir," or so, or "friend," or "gentleman,"
According to the phrase or the addition2
Of man and country.

Rey. Very good, my lord. Pol. And then, sir, does he this, he doesWhat was I about to say? By the mass, I was about to say something: where did I leave? Rey. At "closes in the consequence," at "friend or so," and "gentleman."

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Pol. At "closes in the consequence,"―ay, marry;

1 Fetch of warrant, warranted device. 2 Addition, title.

{To cast1 beyond ourselves in our opinions, As it is common for the younger sort

To lack discretion.] Come, go we to the king: This must be known; which, being kept close, might move

More grief to hide than hate to utter love. Come. [Exeunt.

SCENE II. The same. A room in the castle.

Enter KING, QUEEN, ROSENCRANTZ, GUILDENSTERN, and Attendants.

King. Welcome, dear Rosencrantz and Guildenstern!

Moreover that we much did long to see you,
The need we have to use you did provoke
Our hasty sending. Something have you heard
Of Hamlet's transformation; so I call it,
Sith nor the exterior nor the inward man
Resembles that it was. What it should be,
More than his father's death, that thus hath
put him

10

So much from the understanding of himself,
I cannot dream of: I entreat you both,
That, being of so young days brought up with
him,

And sith so neighbour'd to his youth and humour,

That you vouchsafe your rest here in our court
Some little time: so by your companies
To draw him on to pleasures, and to gather,
So much as from occasion you may glean,
Whether aught to us unknown afflicts him thus,
That open'd lies within our remedy.

Queen. Good gentlemen, he hath much talk'd

Are joyfully return'd.

40

King. Thou still hast been the father of good news.

Pol. Have I, my lord? Assure you, my good liege,

I hold my duty, as I hold my soul,
Both to my God and to my gracious king:
And I do think-or else this brain of mine
Hunts not the trail of policy so sure

As it hath us'd to do-that I have found
The very cause of Hamlet's lunacy.

King. O, speak of that; that do I long to hear.

50

[Pol. Give first admittance to th' ambassadors;

My news shall be the fruit1 to that great feast King. Thyself do grace to them, and bring them in. [Exit Polonius. He tells me, my dear Gertrude, he hath found The head and source of all your son's distemper.

Queen. I doubt it is no other but the main;5 His father's death, and our o'erhasty marriage. King. Well, we shall sift him.

Re-enter POLONIUS, with VOLTIMAND and
CORNELIUS.

Welcome, my good friends!! Say, Voltimand, what from our brotherNorway??

Upon our first, he sent out to suppress
His nephew's levies, which to him appear'd
To be a preparation 'gainst the Polack,
But, better look'd into, he truly found
It was against your highness: whereat griev'd,
That so his sickness, age, and impotence,
Was falsely borne in hand,1 sends out arrests
On Fortinbras; which he, in brief, obeys;
Receives rebuke from Norway, and, in fine,
Makes vow before his uncle never more
To give the assay of arms against your majesty.
Whereon old Norway, overcome with joy,
Gives him three thousand crowns in annual fee;
And his commission to employ those soldiers,
So levied as before, against the Polack:
With an entreaty, herein further shown,

70

King. It likes us well; And at our more consider'd time we'll read, Answer, and think upon this business. Meantime we thank you for your well-took labour:

Go to your rest; at night we'll feast together: Most welcome home!

[Exeunt Voltimand and Cornelius. Pol. This business is well ended.] My liege, and madam,-to expostulate 2 What majesty should be, what duty is, Why day is day, night night, and time is time, Were nothing but to waste night, day, and time.

Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit,3 And tediousness the limbs and outward flour

And pity 't is 't is true: a foolish figure;

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But farewell it, for I will use no art.
Mad let us grant him, then: and now remains
That we find out the cause of this effect,
Or rather say, the cause of this defect,
For this effect defective comes by cause:
Thus it remains, and the remainder thus.
Perpend.1

I have a daughter,-have whilst she is mine,-
Who, in her duty and obedience, mark,
Hath given me this: now gather, and surmise.
[Reads.

"To the celestial and my soul's idol, the most beautified Ophelia,"

110

131

Receiv'd his love?
Pol.
What do you think of me?
King. As of a man faithful and honourable.
Pol. I would fain prove so. But what might
you think,
When I had seen this hot love on the wing,-
As I perceiv'd it, I must tell you that,
Before my daughter told me,-what might you,
Or my dear majesty your queen here, think,
If I had play'd the desk or table-book,
Or given my heart a winking, mute and dumb,
Or look'd upon this love with idle sight;

4 Perpend, consider.

Ham. Well, God-a-mercy.

What might you think? No, I went round1 to work,

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And my young mistress thus I did bespeak:
"Lord Hamlet is a prince, out of thy star;
This must not be:" and then I prescripts gave
her,

That she should lock herself from his resort,
Admit no messengers, receive no tokens.
Which done, she took the fruits of my advice:
And he repulsed,—a short tale to make,—
Fell into a sadness, then into a fast,
Thence to a watch,2 thence into a weakness,
Thence to a lightness,3 and, by this declension
Into the madness wherein now he raves
And all we mourn for.

King

150

Do you think 't is this?
Queen. It may be, very likely.
Pol. Hath there been such a time-I'd fain
know that-

That I have positively said ""Tis so,"
When it prov'd otherwise?

Ham. Let her not walk i' the sun: conception is a blessing; but not as your daughter may conceive:-friend, look to 't.

Pol. [Aside] How say you by that? Still harping on my daughter: yet he knew me not at first; he said I was a fishmonger: he is far gone, far gone: and truly in my youth I suffered much extremity for love; very near this. I'll speak to him again.—What do you read, my lord?

Ham. Words, words, words.
Pol. What is the matter, my
Ham. Between who?

lord?

193

Pol. I mean, the matter that you read, my lord.

Ham. Slanders, sir: for the satirical rogue says here, that old men have gray beards, that their faces are wrinkled, their eyes purging thick amber and plum-tree gum, and that they have a plentiful lack of wit, together with most weak hams: all which, sir, though I most powerfully and potently believe, yet I hold it not honesty to have it thus set down; for you yourself, sir, should be old as I am, if, like a crab, you could go backward.

Pol. [Aside] Though this be madness, yet there is method in 't.-Will you walk out of the air, my lord?