Act V. Scene
III.
Scene III.—Troy. Before PRIAM'S Palace.
Enter HECTOR and ANDROMACHE.
And. When was my lord so much ungently
temper'd,
To stop his ears against admonishment?
Unarm, unarm, and do not fight to-day.
Hect. You train me to offend you; get
you in:
By all the everlasting gods, I'll go.
And. My dreams will, sure, prove ominous to
the day.
Hect. No more, I say.
Enter CASSANDRA.
Cas. Where is my brother Hector?
And. Here, sister; arm'd, and bloody in in-
tent.
Consort with me in loud and dear petition;
Pursue we him on knees; for I have dream'd
Of bloody turbulence, and this whole night
Hath nothing been but shapes and forms of
slaughter.
Cas. O! 'tis true.
Hect. Ho! bid my trumpet sound.
Cas. No notes of sally, for the heavens, sweet
brother.
Hect. Be gone, I say: the gods have heard
me swear.
Cas. The gods are deaf to hot and peevish
vows:
They are polluted offerings, more abhorred
Than spotted livers in the sacrifice.
And. O! be persuaded: do not count it holy
To hurt by being just: it is as lawful,
For we would give much, to use violent thefts,
And rob in the behalf of charity.
Cas. It is the purpose that makes strong the
vow;
But vows to every purpose must not hold.
Unarm, sweet Hector.
Hect. Hold you still, I say;
Mine honour keeps the weather of my fate:
Life every man holds dear; but the dear man
Holds honour far more precious-dear than life.
Enter TROILUS.
How now, young man! mean'st thou to fight
to-day?
And. Cassandra, call my father to persuade.
[Exit CASSANDRA.
Hect. No, faith, young Troilus; doff thy har-
ness, youth;
I am to-day i' the vein of chivalry:
Let grow thy sinews till their knots be strong,
And tempt not yet the brushes of the war.
Unarm thee, go, and doubt thou not, brave boy,
I'll stand to-day for thee and me and Troy.
Tro. Brother, you have a vice of mercy in
you,
Which better fits a lion than a man.
Hect. What vice is that, good Troilus? chide
me for it.
Tro. When many times the captive Grecian
falls,
Even in the fan and wind of your fair sword,
You bid them rise, and live.
Hect. O! 'tis fair play.
Tro. Fool's play, by heaven. Hector.
Hect. How now! how now!
Tro. For the love of all the gods,
Let's leave the hermit pity with our mothers,
And when we have our armours buckled on,
The venom'd vengeance ride upon our swords,
Spur them to ruthful work, rein them from
ruth.
Hect. Fie, savage, fie!
Tro. Hector, then 'tis wars.
Hect. Troilus, I would not have you fight
to-day.
Tro. Who should withhold me?
Not fate, obedience, nor the hand of Mars
Beckoning with fiery truncheon my retire; I
Not Priamus and Hecuba on knees,
Their eyes o'ergalled with recourse of tears;
Nor you, my brother, with your true sword
drawn,
Oppos'd to hinder me, should stop my way,
But by my ruin.
Re-enter CASSANDRA, with PRIAM.
Cas. Lay hold upon him, Priam, hold him
fast:
He is thy crutch; now if thou lose thy stay,
Thou on him leaning, and all Troy on thee,
Fall all together.
Pri. Come, Hector, come; go back:
Thy wife hath dreamed; thy mother hath had
visions;
Cassandra doth foresee; and I myself
Am like a prophet suddenly enrapt,
To tell thee that this day is ominous:
Therefore, come back.
Hect. Æneas is a-field;
And I do stand engaged to many Greeks,
Even in the faith of valour, to appear
This morning to them.
Pri. Ay, but thou shalt not go.
Hect. I must not break my faith.
You know me dutiful; therefore, dear sir,
Let me not shame respect, but give me leave
To take that course by your consent and voice,
Which you do here forbid me, royal Priam.
Cas. O Priam! yield not to him.
And. Do not, dear father.
Hect. Andromache, I am offended with you:
Upon the love you bear me, get you in.
[Exit ANDROMACHE.
Tro. This foolish, dreaming, superstitious
girl
Makes all these bodements.
Cas. O farewell! dear Hector.
Look! how thou diest; look! how thy eye turns
pale;
Look! how thy wounds do bleed at many
vents:
Hark! how Troy roars: how Hecuba cries out!
How poor Andromache shrills her dolours forth!
Behold, distraction, frenzy, and amazement,
Like witless anticks, one another meet,
And all cry Hector! Hector's dead! O Hector!
Tro. Away! Away!
Cas. Farewell. Yet, soft! Hector, I take my
leave:
Thou dost thyself and all our Troy deceive.
[Exit.
Hect. You are amaz'd, my liege, at her ex-
claim.
Go in and cheer the town: we'll forth and fight;
Do deeds worth praise and tell you them at
night.
Pri. Farewell: the gods with safety stand
about thee!
[Exeunt severally PRIAM and HECTOR,
Alarums.
Tro. They are at it, hark! Proud Diomed,
believe,
I come to lose my arm, or win my sleeve.
As TROILUS is going out, enter, from the other
side, PANDARUS.
Pan. Do you hear, my lord? do you hear?
Tro. What now?
Pan. here's a letter come from yond poor
girl.
Tro. Let me read.
Pan. A whoreson tisick, a whoreson rascally
tisick so troubles me, and the foolish fortune of
this girl; and what one thing, what another,
that I shall leave you one o' these days: and I
have a rheum in mine eyes too, and such an
ache in my bones that, unless a man were
cursed, I cannot tell what to think on't. What
says she there?
Tro. Words, words, mere words, no matter
from the heart;
The effect doth operate another way.
[Tearing the letter.
Go, wind to wind, there turn and change to-
gether.
My love with words and errors still she feeds,
But edifies another with her deeds.
[Exeunt severally.
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