Even like the deed that's done. On Tuesday last,

A falcon, towering in her pride of place,

Was by a mousing owl hawk'd at, and kill'd.

Rosse. And Duncan's horses (a thing most strange and

certain)

Beauteous and swift, the minions of their race,

Turn'd wild in nature, broke their stalls, flung out,

Contending 'gainst obedience, as they would

Make war with mankind.

Old M.

'Tis said, they ate each other.

Rosse. They did so; to th' amazement of mine eyes, That look'd upon't. Here comes the good Macduff.—

Enter MACDuff.

How goes the world, sir, now?

Macd.

Why, see you not?

Rosse. Is't known, who did this more than bloody deed? Macd. Those that Macbeth hath slain.

Rosse.

What good could they pretend?

Macd.

Alas, the day!

They were suborn'd.

Malcolm, and Donalbain, the king's two sons,

Are stol'n away and fled; which puts upon them
Suspicion of the deed.

Rosse.

'Gainst nature still:

Thriftless ambition, that will ravin up

Thine own life's means !-Then, 'tis most like,

The sovereignty will fall upon Macbeth.

Macd. He is already nam'd, and gone to Scone

To be invested.

Rosse.

Where is Duncan's body?

Macd. Carried to Colme-kill";

The sacred store-house of his predecessors,

And guardian of their bones.

Rosse.

Will you to Scone?

Well, I will thither.

Macd. No, cousin; I'll to Fife.

Rosse.

Macd. Well, may you see things well done there,-adieuLest our old robes sit easier than our new.

6 Carried to Colme-kill;] Iona, the burial-place of many of the early kings of Scotland. It is now called Icolmkill, "kill" meaning a cell or chapel: "Colmekill" is therefore the chapel of St. Columbo.

Rosse. Farewell, father.

Old M. God's benison go with you; and with those, That would make good of bad, and friends of foes! [Exeunt.

ACT III. SCENE I.

Fores. A Room in the Palace.

Enter BANQUO.

Ban. Thou hast it now, King, Cawdor, Glamis, all,
As the weird women promis'd; and, I fear,
Thou play'dst most foully for't: yet it was said,
It should not stand in thy posterity;

But that myself should be the root, and father
Of many kings. If there come truth from them,
(As upon thee, Macbeth, their speeches shine')
Why, by the verities on thee made good,
May they not be my oracles as well,

And set me up in hope? But, hush; no more.

Sennet sounded. Enter MACBETH, as King; Lady MACBETH, as Queen; LENOX, Rosse, Lords, Ladies, and Attendants.

Macb. Here's our chief guest.

Lady M.

If he had been forgotten,

It had been as a gap in our great feast,

And all thing unbecoming.

Macb. To-night we hold a solemn supper, sir,

And I'll request your presence.

Ban.

Lay your highness'

Command upon me; to the which my duties

Are with a most indissoluble tie

For ever knit.

་

their speeches SHINE] "Their speeches show" in the corr. fo. 1632; but the change does not seem necessary, nor perhaps judicious.

Command upon me,] It is "Let your highness," &c. in the folios, but Sir W. Davenant, in his alteration of "Macbeth," amended Let to "Lay," and such is the correction in the fo. 1632. We have therefore no difficulty in adopting "Lay," although Set may appear to come nearer the letters.

Macb. Ride you this afternoon ?
Ban. Ay, my good lord.

Macb. We should have else desir'd your good advice
(Which still hath been both grave and prosperous)
In this day's council; but we'll take to-morrow'.
Is't far you ride?

Ban. As far, my lord, as will fill up the time
"Twixt this and supper: go not my horse the better,
I must become a borrower of the night

For a dark hour, or twain.

Macb.

Ban. My lord, I will not.

Fail not our feast.

Macb. We hear, our bloody cousins are bestow'd
In England, and in Ireland; not confessing
Their cruel parricide, filling their hearers
With strange invention. But of that to-morrow;
When, therewithal, we shall have cause of state
Craving us jointly. Hie you to horse: adieu,
Till you return at night. Goes Fleance with you?
Ban. Ay, my good lord: our time does call upon us.
Macb. I wish your horses swift, and sure of foot;
And so I do commend you to their backs.

The sweeter welcome, we will keep ourself

[Exit BANQUO.

Till supper-time alone: while then, God be with you.

[Exeunt Lady MACBETH, Lords, Ladies, &c.

Sirrah, a word with you. Attend those men

Our pleasure?

Atten. They are, my lord, without the palace gate.

Macb. Bring them before us.-[Exit Atten.] To be thus is

nothing,

But to be safely thus.-Our fears in Banquo

Stick deep, and in his royalty of nature

Reigns that which would be fear'd: 'tis much he dares;

And to that dauntless temper of his mind,

He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour

To act in safety. There is none but he

Whose being I do fear, and under him

9

but we'll TAKE to-morrow.] Malone persisted in changing "take" to talk, but without the slightest pretence, the meaning being quite obvious.

VOL. V.

Ee

My genius is rebuk'd, as, it is said,

Mark Antony's was by Cæsar. He chid the sisters,
When first they put the name of King upon me,
And bade them speak to him; then, prophet-like,
They hail'd him father to a line of kings.
Upon my head they plac'd a fruitless crown,
And put a barren sceptre in my gripe,
Thence to be wrench'd with an unlineal hand,
No son of mine succeeding. If't be so,
For Banquo's issue have I fil'd my mind',
For them the gracious Duncan have I murder'd;
Put rancours in the vessel of my peace
Only for them; and mine eternal jewel
Given to the common enemy of man,

To make them kings, the seed of Banquo kings'!
Rather than so, come, fate, into the list,

And champion me to the utterance'!-Who's there?

Re-enter Attendant, with two Murderers.

Now, go to the door, and stay there till we call.—

Was it not yesterday we spoke together? 1 Mur. It was, so please your highness. Macb.

[Exit Attendant.

Well then, now

Have you consider'd of my speeches? Know,
That it was he, in the times past, which held you
So under fortune; which, you thought, had been
Our innocent self. This I made good to you

In our last conference; pass'd in probation with you,

How you were borne in hand; how cross'd; the instruments;
Who wrought with them; and all things else, that might,
To half a soul, and to a notion craz'd,

Say, "Thus did Banquo."

1 Mur.

You made it known to us.

Macb. I did so; and went farther, which is now

1 For Banquo's issue have I FIL'D my mind,] i. e. Defil'd my mind. To "file" is often used for to defile, by elision of the preposition. We meet with it in Rowland's Looke to It, for Ile Stabbe Yee," 1604, "Ile fyle no hands upon thee."-Sign. D 3 b. Other authorities are needless.

2 the SEED of Banquo kings!] It is seeds in the old copies, but amended to "seed" in the corr. fo. 1632, which is doubtless right.

3 And champion me to the UTTERANCE!] i. e. To extremity; Fr. à l'outrance, See "Troilus and Cressida," A. iv. sc. 5, Vol. iv. p. 563, where "utterance" has always been misprinted uttermost.

Our point of second meeting. Do you find
Your patience so predominant in your nature,
That you can let this go? Are you so gospell'd
To pray for this good man, and for his issue,
Whose heavy hand hath bow'd you to the grave,
And beggar'd your's for ever?

1 Mur.

We are men, my liege.
Macb. Ay, in the catalogue ye go for men,

As hounds, and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, curs,
Shoughs, water-rugs, and demi-wolves, are cleped*
All by the name of dogs: the valued file '
Distinguishes the swift, the slow, the subtle,
The house-keeper, the hunter, every one
According to the gift which bounteous nature
Hath in him clos'd, whereby he does receive
Particular addition, from the bill'

That writes them all alike; and so of men.
Now, if you have a station in the file
Not i' the worst rank of manhood, say it,
And I will put that business in your bosoms,
Whose execution takes your enemy off,
Grapples you to the heart and love of us,
Who wear our health but sickly in his life,
Which in his death were perfect.

2 Mur.

I am one, my liege,

Whom the vile blows and buffets of the world

Have so incens'd, that I am reckless what

I do to spite the world.

So weary with disasters', tugg'd with fortune,
That I would set my life on any chance,

To mend it, or be rid on't.

Macb.

Both of you

Know, Banquo was your enemy.

4 are CLEPED] i. e. Are called: so in "Love's Labour's Lost," A. v. sc. 1, Vol. ii. p. 147, "he clepeth a calf, cauf; half, hauf," &c. So in "Hamlet," A. i. sc. 4, "They clepe us drunkards." "Yeleped," which occurs twice in "Love's Labour's Lost," A. i. sc. 1, and A. v. sc. 2, is the same word with the A. S. prefix. the valued FILE] i. e. The "file" or list in which they are valued.

5

6

- from the BILL] i. e. From the "bill" or paper in which they are written all alike the corr. fo. 1632 has quill for "bill," and perhaps quill ought to be placed in the text; but "bill" is very intelligible.

7 SO WEARY with disasters,] The corr. fo. 1632 reads "wearied with disasters," and as we have "tugg'd" in the same line, wearied may be right.