There are a 'thousand Hectors in the field:

Now 'here he fights on 's horse; anon, he 's 'there afoot;
Here, there, and everywhere, he 'leaves and 'takes;
Dexterity so obeying appetite,

That what he 'will, he 'does; and does so much,
That 'proof is called 'impossibility!

Ulysses enters :

Ulyss. O, courage, courage, Princes! Great Achilles
Is arming, weeping, cursing, vowing vengeance:
Patroclus' wounds have 'roused his drowsy blood,
Together with his mangled Myrmidons,a

That-noseless, handless, hacked and chipped,-come
to him,

Crying on 'Hector! Ajax hath lost a friend,
And foams at mouth,—and 'he is armed, and at it,
Roaring for 'Troilus! who hath done to-day
Mad and fantastic execution;

'Engaging and 'redeeming of himself,

With such a careless force, and forceless care,
As if that luck, in very spite of cunning,
Bade 'him win 'all.

In the midst of the confusion, Troilus rushes in:
Tro. Ajax hath ta'en Æneas! Shall it be?

No, by the flame of yonder glorious heaven,
He shall not conquer him: 'I'll be taken too,
Or bring him off:-Fate, hear me what I say!
I reckR not though I end my life to-day.

[Exit Ulysses.

[Exit Troilus.

Achilles enters, followed by his soldiers :
Achil. Come here about me, you my Myrmidons ;a
Mark what I say. Attend me where I fight:d
Strike not a stroke, but keep yourselves in breath;
And when I have the bloody 'Hector found,
Empale him with your weapons round about;
In fellest manner 'execute your aims.
Follow me, sirs, and 'my proceedings eye:-

It is decreed, Hector the Great must die.

[Exeunt.

In another part of the field, Hector is discovered disarming himself, and leaning over the body of an unknown Warrior whom he had slain, having been attracted by his splendid accoutrements. Hect. Most putrifiéd core, so fair without,

Thy goodly armour thus hath cost thy life.

a The Thessalian troops, serving under Achilles, were called Myrmidons.

b O. R. carry. CO. R. care. d wheel. e O. R. arms.

Now is my day's work 'done; I'll take good breath: Rest, sword;-thou hast thy 'fill of blood and death! After he has put off his helmet, and laid his sword aside, Achilles and his Myrmidons enter.

Achil.... Look, Hector, how the sun begins to 'set;
How ugly 'night comes breathing at his heels:
Even with the vail" and darkening of the sun,
To close the 'day up, Hector's 'life is done!
Hect.... I am unarmed: forego this 'vantage, Greek.
Achil. Strike, fellows, strike: this is the man I seek.
Hector is immediately struck down, and dies covered with wounds
So, Ilion, fall thou next! now, Troy, sink down!
Here lie thy 'heart, thy sinews, and thy bone.
On, Myrmidons; and cry you all amain,
"Achilles hath the mighty Hector slain."
Hark! a retreat upon our 'Grecian part.
Myr. The 'Trojan trumpets sound the 'like, my lord.
Achil. The dragon-wing of night o'erspreads the earth,
And, stickler-like, the armies separate.

"A double retreat is sounded.

Sheathes

My half-supped sword, that frankly would have fed,
Pleased with 'this dainty bit, thus goes to bed.-[his sword.
Come, tie his body to my horse's tail;
Along the field I will the Trojan trail.

[Exeunt.

We have now before us the Grecian encampment. Agamemnon, Ajax, Menelaus, Nestor, Diomedes, and others enter, marching. Sounds of rejoicing are heard.

Agam. Hark! hark! what shout is that?

Dio. The bruit is, Hector 's slain, and by Achilles.
Ajax. If it be so, yet 'bragless let it be:

Great Hector was a man as good as he.

Agam. March patiently along.-Let one be sent

To pray Achilles see us at our tent.

If, in this death, the gods have 'us befriended,

Great Troy is 'ours, and our sharp wars are ended. [Exeunt.

Turning towards the Trojan forces we see Æneas and his soldiers. Ene. Stand, ho! yet are 'we masters of the field.

Never go 'home: 'here starve we out the night.

Tro. He 's 'dead; and at the murderer's horse's tail,

In beastly sort, 'dragged through the shameful field.—
Frown-on, you heavens, effect your rage with 'speed!
Sit, gods, upon your thrones, and 'smite at Troy!
I say, at 'once let your brief plagues be 'mercy,
And 'linger not our sure destructions on!
Ene. My lord, you do discomfort all the host.
Tro. You understand me not, that tell me so.

I do not speak of flight, of fear, of death;
But dare 'all imminence that gods and men
Address their dangers in. . . . Hector is 'gone!
Who shall tell Priam so, or Hecuba?

Let him that will a screech-owl aye be called
Go-in to Troy, and say there—“Hector 's dead!"
'There is a word will Priam turn to stone,
Make wells and Niobes of our maids and wives,
Cold statues of our youth; and, in a word,
Scare Troy out of itself. But, march away:
"Hector is dead!" there is no more to say.
Strike a 'free march to Troy!-with comfort go:
'Hope of 'revenge shall hide our inward woe.

END OF TROILUS AND CRESSIDA.

[Exeunt.

a O. R. smile.

b every impending ill.

e Niobe, the daughter of Tantalus, wept for the loss of her children till she was converted into a stone fountain.

HAMLET,

PRINCE OF DENMARK.

The story of the Tragedy of "Hamlet" is originally given by Saxo Grammaticus, in his History of Denmark: from that work, it was extracted by Belleforest, the French novelist: and thence translated, and published in English, under the title of the "Hystorie of Hamblett," about twenty years before the close of the 16th century. Shortly afterwards it formed the subject of a play, which was acted before 1589: but of this version (supposed to have been written by Thomas Kyda no copy is known to exist. There are, however, three distinct records of its performance :

In the Preface to Robert Greene's novel of “Menaphon" (published in 1589) Thomas Nash says "he will afford you whole Hamlets, I should say Handfuls, of tragical speeches."-Again,-we learn from Henslow the actor's Diary (June 9th, 1594) that it was performed once in the theatre of Newington Butts (near London,) when the manager's share of the profits amounted to eight shillings. And again,-In Dr. Lodge's "Wits Miseries," published in 1596, he describes one of the Devils as a "a foule lubber, and looks as pale as the vizard of the Ghost which cried so miserably at the thea're, Hamlet, revenge!"

There are extant two versions of Shakespeare's tragedy preceding the folio of 1623; that of 1603, and that of 1604. In the reprint of the former (1825,) it is stated to be "the only known copy of this tragedy, as originally written by Shakespeare, which he afterwards altered and enlarged." If this statement is correct, the earlier play is probably surreptitious-printed without the author's permission-and it may therefore be regarded as the first sketch of a great picture. Otherwise, notwithstanding the evidence of facts, it is difficult to believe that the two versions emanated from the same pen-especially from Shakespeare, who is reported (as a stage tradition) by Ben Jonson, "never to have blotted out a line " Nor can it now be ascertained to what extent the earlier but un

known play was used as a foundation. The "Hamlet" of 1603"

a A dramatic author (contemporary with Shakespeare). His best known play is "The Spanish Tragedy, or Hieronimo is mad again It was first produced in 1588, and is said to have been more frequently printed than any play of the time.

b The earliest mention of Shakespeare's play is thus made in the Stationers' Register: "July 26, 1602. A Booke called the Revenge of Hamlett Prince of Denmarke, as it was lately acted by the Lord Chamberlain his servants." The publication was deferred till 1603, when it appeared with the following title: "The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke, by William Shakespeare. As it hath beene diverse times acted by his Highnesse servants in the Cittie of London, as also in the Two Universities of Cambridge and Oxford, and elsewhere... 1603." Of this play (known as the Duke of Devonshire's copy) only one imperfect copy (wanting the end) was known to exist; but it is now duplicated by another imperfect copy (wanting the beginning).

is rough, crude, and often unmetrical; the "Hamlet" of 1604a is the acknowledged literary masterpiece of the world.

The Characters retained in this Condensation are:

CLAUDIUS, King of Denmark.
HAMLET, Son to the former, and
Nephew to the present King.
HORATIO, Friend to Hamlet.
POLONIUS, Lord Chamberlain.
LAERTES, his Son.

MARCELLUS, Officers.

BERNARDO,

GHOST OF HAMLET'S FATHER.
PLAYERS.

Two CLOWNS, Grave-diggers.
GERTRUDE, Queen of Denmark,
and Mother to Hamlet.

OPHELIA, Daughter to Polonius. Lords, Ladies, Officers, and Attendants.

The Scene is at Elsinore, a seaport of the Island of Seeland, belonging to Denmark.

The Time is in the Eleventh century.

The Sentinels on guard before the Castle at Elsinore had been twice startled at midnight by a ghostly figure, bearing a resemblance to the late King Hamlet—who has not long been dead; although his widow is already re-married to King Claudius, her late brother-inlaw. These officers have informed Horatio, (a former college-friend of young Prince Hamlet,) and he agrees to join them that night on their watch; that he might testify to the almost incredible circumstance, and, if possible, ascertain the object of the mysterious visitation. The Ghost again appears, but it deigns no reply to Horatio. The three friends then resolve tc inform Prince Hamlet; for, says Horatio—

-"upon my life

This Spirit, dumb to 'us, will speak to 'him."

The Scene is a Room of State in the Palace at Elsinore, where the King and Queen are holding their first levée after their marriage. Among the Courtiers are Polonius, (the aged Lord Chamberlain,) and his son Laertes: Young Hamlet attends the gaudy ceremony in funeral attire. The King speaks:

King. Though yet of Hamlet our dear brother's death

The memory be green; and that it us befitted

To bear our 'hearts in grief, and our whole kingdom

a The other Version-the same, but how different!-was thus announced in 1604 :"The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke. By William Shakespeare. Newly imprinted and enlarged to almost as much againe as it was, according to the true and perfect coppie... 1604." This edition is nearly the same as that printed in the folio collection of 1623.

Some extracts are given at the end of this Condensation (p 230) from the First Quarto version, 1603.

b In the Version of 1603, Polonius is named Corambis-Ophelia is Ofelia-Laertes is Leartes-Gertrude is Gertred-and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Rossencraft and Gilderstone. efresh.