Agam. They are in action. Nest. Now, Ajax, hold thine own! Tro. Awake thee! Agam. His blows are well dispos'd:—there, Ajax ! Dio. You must no more. Hector, thou sleep'st: [Trumpets cease. Princes, enough, so please you. Ene. Dio. As Hector pleases. Hect. Thou art, great lord, my father's sister's son, A cousin-german to great Priam's seed; A gory emulation 'twixt us twain. Were thy commixtion Greek and Trojan so, That thou could'st say-"This hand is Grecian all, I thank thee, Hector: Ajax. I came to kill thee, cousin, and bear hence A great addition earned in thy death. Hect. Not Neoptolemus so mirable On whose bright crest Fame with her loud'st Oyez 7 That any Drop-] The quarto misprints "drop" day, and "borrow'dst" borrow'st. Cries, "This is he !" could promise to himself We'll answer it; Hect. Dio. 'Tis Agamemnon's wish; and great Achilles To the expecters of our Trojan part: Desire them home.-Give me thy hand, my cousin ; Ajax. Great Agamemnon comes to meet us here. But for Achilles, mine own searching eyes Shall find him by his large and portly size. Agam. Worthy of arms! as welcome as to one That would be rid of such an enemy. But that's no welcome: understand more clear, But in this extant moment, faith and troth, Men. Let me confirm my princely brother's greeting: You brace of warlike brothers, welcome hither. Worthy of arms!] In the quartos this speech consists only of the first two lines and of the last line. It begins in the quartos, "Worthy all arms." Hect. Whom must we answer? Ene. The noble Menelaus. Hect. O! you, my lord? by Mars his gauntlet, thanks. Mock not, that I affect th' untraded oath : Your quondam wife swears still by Venus' glove; Nest. I have, thou gallant Trojan, seen thee oft, Through ranks of Greekish youth: and I have seen thee, As hot as Perseus, spur thy Phrygian steed, And I have seen thee pause, and take thy breath, Never like thee. Let an old man embrace thee; Ene. 'Tis the old Nestor. Hect. Let me embrace thee, good old chronicle, That hast so long walk'd hand in hand with time. Most reverend Nestor, I am glad to clasp thee. 9 Despising many forfeits and subduements,] This is the reading of the quartos: the folio gives the line, "And seen thee scorning forfeits and subduements." 2 1 - unto my standers-by,] The quartos, "to some my standers by." have HEMM'D thee in,] The quartos read, "have shrupd thee in," the folio as in our text. Nest. I would, my arms could match thee in con tention, As they contend with thee in courtesy3. Hect. I would they could. Nest. Ha! By this white beard, I'd fight with thee to-morrow. Well, welcome, welcome! I have seen the time Ulyss. I wonder now how yonder city stands, When we have here her base and pillar by us. Hect. I know your favour, lord Ulysses, well. Ah, sir! there's many a Greek and Trojan dead, Since first I saw yourself and Diomed In Ilion, on your Greekish embassy. Ulyss. Sir, I foretold you then what would ensue : My prophecy is but half his journey yet; For yonder walls, that pertly front your town, Yond' towers, whose wanton tops do buss the clouds, Must kiss their own feet. Hect. I must not believe you. A drop of Grecian blood: the end crowns all; Will one day end it. So to him we leave it. Ulyss. To feast with me, and see me at my tent. Achil. I shall forestall thee, lord Ulysses, thou.- 3 As they contend with thee in courtesy.] This line is only in the folio. And QUOTED joint by joint.] i. e. noted. The word is thus used by Ben Jonson, Webster, and other writers of the time. Hect. Stand fair, I pray thee: let me look on thee. Achil. Behold thy fill. Hect. Nay, I have done already. Achil. Thou art too brief: I will the second time, As I would buy thee, view thee limb by limb. Hect. O like a book of sport thou'lt read me o'er; But there's more in me than thou understand'st. Why dost thou so oppress me with thine eye? Achil. Tell me, you heavens, in which part of his body Shall I destroy him, whether there, there, or there? And make distinct the very breach, whereout man, To answer such a question. Stand again: Where thou wilt hit me dead? Achil. I tell thee, yea. Hect. Wert thou an oracle to tell me so, Or may Ajax. Do not chafe thee, cousin : And you, Achilles, let these threats alone, Till accident, or purpose, bring you to't: As I would BUY thee,] Boswell tells us that "the first folio reads pry thee." Such is not the case with any copy of the first folio I have seen. 6 Wert thou AN oracle-] "Wert thou the oracle " in the folio. 7 that STITHIED Mars his helm,] A stith is an anvil, and a stithy the place where an anvil is employed. |