[Sc. vi.]
Enter King and Queene, Rossencraft, and Gilderstone.
King Right noble friends, that our deere cosin Hamlet
Hath lost the very heart of all his sence,
It is most right, and we most sory for him:
Therefore we doe desire, euen as you tender
Our care to him, and our great loue to you, 5
That you will labour but to wring from him
The cause and ground of his distemperancie.
Doe this, the king of Denmarke shal be thankefull.
Ros. My Lord, whatsoeuer lies within our power
Your maiestie may more commaund in wordes 10
Then vse perswasions to your liege men, bound
By loue, by duetie, and obedience.
Guil. What we may doe for both your Maiesties
To know the griefe troubles the Prince your sonne,
We will indeuour all the best we may, 15
So in all duetie doe we take our leaue.
King Thankes Guilderstone, and gentle Rossencraft.
Que. Thankes Rossencraft, and gentle Gilderstone.
Enter Corambis and Ofelia.
Cor. My Lord, the Ambassadors are ioyfully
Return'd from Norway. 20
King Thou still hast beene the father of good news.
Cor. Haue I my Lord? I assure your grace,
I holde my duetie as I holde my life,
Both to my God, and to my soueraigne King:
And I beleeue, or else this braine of mine 25
Hunts not the traine of policie so well
As it had wont to doe, but I haue found
The very depth of Hamlets lunacie.
Queene God graunt he hath.
Enter the Ambassadors.
King Now Voltemar, what from our brother Norway?30
Volt. Most faire returnes of greetings and desires,
Vpon our first he sent forth to suppresse
His nephews leuies, which to him appear'd
To be a preparation gainst the Polacke:
But better look't into, he truely found 35
It was against your Highnesse, whereat grieued,
That so his sickenesse, age, and impotence,
Was falsely borne in hand, sends out arrests
On Fortenbrasse, which he in briefe obays,
Receiues rebuke from Norway: and in fine, 40
Makes vow before his vncle, neuer more
To giue the assay of Armes against your Maiestie,
Whereon olde Norway ouercome with ioy,
Giues him three thousand crownes in annuall fee,
And his Commission to employ those souldiers, 45
So leuied as before, against the Polacke,
With an intreaty heerein further shewne,
That it would please you to giue quiet passe
Through your dominions, for that enterprise
On such regardes of safety and allowances 50
As therein are set downe.
King It likes vs well, and at fit time and leasure
Weele reade and answere these his Articles,
Meane time we thanke you for your well
Tooke labour: go to your rest, at night weele feast togither: 55
Right welcome home. exeunt Ambassadors.
Cor. This busines is very well dispatched.
Now my Lord, touching the yong Prince Hamlet,
Certaine it is that hee is madde: mad let vs grant him then:
Now to know the cause of this effect, 60
Or else to say the cause of this defect,
For this effect defectiue comes by cause.
Queene Good my Lord be briefe.
Cor. Madam I will: my Lord, I haue a daughter,
Haue while shee's mine: for that we thinke 65
Is surest, we often loose: now to the Prince.
My lord, but note this letter,
The which my daughter in obedience
Deliuer'd to my handes.
King Reade it my Lord. 70
Cor. Marke my Lord.
Doubt that in earth is fire,
Doubt that the starres doe moue,
Doubt trueth to be a liar,
But doe not doubt I loue. 75
To the beautifull Ofelia:
Thine euer the most vnhappy Prince Hamlet.
My Lord, what doe you thinke of me?
I, or what might you thinke when I sawe this?
King As of a true friend and a most louing subiect. 80
Cor. I would be glad to prooue so.
Now when I saw this letter, thus I bespake my maiden:
Lord Hamlet is a Prince out of your starre,
And one that is vnequall for your loue:
Therefore I did commaund her refuse his letters, 85
Deny his tokens, and to absent her selfe.
Shee as my childe obediently obey'd me.
Now since which time, seeing his loue thus cross'd,
Which I tooke to be idle, and but sport,
He straitway grew into a melancholy, 90
From that vnto a fast, then vnto distraction,
Then into a sadnesse, from that vnto a madnesse,
And so by continuance, and weakenesse of the braine
Into this frensie, which now possesseth him:
And if this be not true, take this from this. 95
King Thinke you t'is so?
Cor. How? so my Lord, I would very faine know
That thing that I haue saide t'is so, positiuely,
And it hath fallen out otherwise.
Nay, if circumstances leade me on, 100
Ile finde it out, if it were hid
As deepe as the centre of the earth.
King. How should wee trie this same?
Cor. Mary my good lord thus,
The Princes walke is here in the galery, 105
There let Ofelia, walke vntill hee comes:
Your selfe and I will stand close in the study,
There shall you heare the effect of all his hart,
And if it proue any otherwise then loue,
Then let my censure faile an other time. 110
King. see where hee comes poring vppon a booke.
Enter Hamlet.
Cor. Madame, will it please your grace
To leaue vs here?
Que. With all my hart. exit.
Cor. And here Ofelia, reade you on this booke, 115
And walke aloofe, the King shal be vnseene.
Ham. To be, or not to be, I there's the point,
To Die, to sleepe, is that all? I all:
No, to sleepe, to dreame, I mary there it goes, 120
For in that dreame of death, when wee awake,
And borne before an euerlasting Iudge,
From whence no passenger euer retur'nd,
The vndiscouered country, at whose sight
The happy smile, and the accursed damn'd. 125
But for this, the ioyfull hope of this,
Whol'd beare the scornes and flattery of the world,
Scorned by the right rich, the rich curssed of the poore?
The widow being oppressed, the orphan wrong'd,
The taste of hunger, or a tirants raigne, 130
And thousand more calamities besides,
To grunt and sweate vnder this weary life,
When that he may his full Quietus make,
With a bare bodkin, who would this indure,
But for a hope of something after death?
Which pusles the braine, and doth confound the sence, 135
Which makes vs rather beare those euilles we haue,
Than flie to others that we know not of.
I that, O this conscience makes cowardes of vs all,
Lady in thy orizons, be all my sinnes remembred.
Ofel. My Lord, I haue sought opportunitie, which now 140
I haue, to redeliuer to your worthy handes, a small remembrance,
such tokens which I haue receiued of you.
Ham. Are you faire?
Ofel. My Lord.
Ham. Are you honest? 145
Ofel. What meanes my Lord?
Ham. That if you be faire and honest,
Your beauty should admit no discourse to your honesty.
Ofel. My Lord, can beauty haue better priuiledge than
with honesty? 150
Ham. Yea mary may it; for Beauty may transforme
Honesty, from what she was into a bawd:
Then Honesty can transforme Beauty:
This was sometimes a Paradox,
But now the time giues it scope. 155
I neuer gaue you nothing.
Ofel. My Lord, you know right well you did,
And with them such earnest vowes of loue,
As would haue moou'd the stoniest breast aliue,
But now too true I finde, 160
Rich giftes waxe poore, when giuers grow vnkinde.
Ham. I neuer loued you.
Ofel. You made me beleeue you did.
Ham. O thou shouldst not a beleeued me!
Go to a Nunnery goe, why shouldst thou 165
Be a breeder of sinners? I am my selfe indifferent honest,
But I could accuse my selfe of such crimes
It had beene better my mother had ne're borne me,
O I am very prowde, ambitious, disdainefull,
With more sinnes at my becke, then I haue thoughts 170
To put them in, what should such fellowes as I
Do, crawling between heauen and earth?
To a Nunnery goe, we are arrant knaues all,
Beleeue none of vs, to a Nunnery goe.
Ofel. O heauens secure him! 175
Ham. Wher's thy father?
Ham. For Gods sake let the doores be shut on him,
He may play the foole no where but in his
Owne house: to a Nunnery goe. 180
Ofel. Help him good God.
Ham. If thou dost marry, Ile giue thee
This plague to thy dowry:
Be thou as chaste as yce, as pure as snowe,
Thou shalt not scape calumny, to a Nunnery goe. 185
Ofel. Alas, what change is this?
Ham. But if thou wilt needes marry, marry a foole,
For wisemen know well enough,
What monsters you make of them, to a Nunnery goe.
Ofel. Pray God restore him. 190
Ham. Nay, I haue heard of your paintings too,
God hath giuen you one face,
And you make your selues another,
You fig, and you amble, and you nickname Gods creatures,
Making your wantonnesse, your ignorance, 195
A pox, t'is scuruy, Ile no more of it,
It hath made me madde: Ile no more marriages,
All that are married but one, shall liue,
The rest shall keepe as they are, to a Nunnery goe,
To a Nunnery goe. exit. 200
Ofe. Great God of heauen, what a quicke change is this?
The Courtier, Scholler, Souldier, all in him,
All dasht and splinterd thence, O woe is me,
To a seene what I haue seene, see what I see. exit.