Of Will and Judgment; how may I avoid,
Although my Will diftafte what is elected,
The wife I chufe? there can be no evafion
To blench from this, and to stand firm by honour.
We turn not back the filks upon the merchant,

When we have foil'd them; nor th' remainder viands
We do not throw in unrefpective fieve,

Because we now are full. It was thought meet,
Paris fhould do fome vengeance on the Greeks?
Your breath of full confent bellied his fails,
The feas and winds old wranglers took a truce,
And did him fervice; he touch'd the Ports defir'd,
And, for an old aunt, whom the Greeks held captive,
He brought a Grecian Queen, whofe youth and freshness
Wrinkles Apollo's, and makes pale the morning.
Why keep we her? the Grecians keep our aunt.
Is the worth keeping? why, he is a pearl,
Whose price hath launch'd above a thousand fhips,
And turn'd crown'd Kings to merchants.
If you'll avouch, 'twas wifdom Paris went,
(As you muft needs, for you all cry'd, go, go)
If you'll confefs, he brought home noble prize,
(As you must needs, for you all clap'd your hands,
And cry'd, inestimable!) why do you how
The iffue of your proper wisdoms rate,
"And do a deed that fortuné never did,
Beggar that estimation which you priz'd

stale the morning.

3 And do a deed that fortune ne

ver did,] If I understand this paffage, the meaning is, Why do you by cenfuring the determination of your own wifdoms, degrade Helen, whom fortune has not yet deprived of her value, or against whom, as the wife of Paris, fortune has not in this war fo declared, as to make us value ber f. This is very harth, and much ftrained.

Richer than fea and land? O theft most base!
That we have ftoll'n what we do fear to keep!
But thieves, unworthy of a thing fo ftoll'n,
Who in their country did them that difgrace,
We fear to warrant in our native place!
Caf. [within.] Cry, Trojans, cry!

Pri. What noife? what fhriek is this?
Troi. 'Tis our mad fifter, I do know her voice
Caf. [within.] Cry, Trojans !

Helt. It is Caffandra.

Enter Caffandra, with her hair about ber ears.

Caf. Cry, Trojans, cry; lend me ten thousand eyes, And I will fill them with prophetick tears. Het. Peace, fifter, peace,

Caf. Virgins and boys, mid-age and wrinkled Elders, Soft infancy, that nothing can but cry, Add to my clamour! let us pay betimes

A moiety of that mass of moan to come :

Cry, Trojans, ery; practise your eyes with tears.
Troy muft not be, nor goodly Ilion stand:
Our fire-brand brother, Paris, burns us all.
Cry, Trojans, cry! a Helen and a woe;

Cry, cry, Troy burns, or elfe let Helen go.

[Exit:

Helt. Now, youthful Troilus, do not thefe high ftrains

Of Divination in our fifter work

Some touches of remorfe? Or is your blood

So madly hot, that no difcourfe of reason,

Nor fear of bad success in a bad cause,

Can qualify the fame ?.

Troi. Why, brother Hector,

We may not think the juftness of each act

4 But thieves, Hanmer reads, Bafe thieves,

Such and no other than event doth form it;
Nor once deject the courage of our minds,
Because Caffandra's mad; her brain-fick raptures
Cannot diftafte the goodness of a quarrel,
Which hath our feveral honours all engag'd
To make it gracious. For my private part,
I am no more touch'd than all Priam's fons;
And, Jove forbid! there fhould be done amongst us
Such things, as might offend the weakest spleen
To fight for and maintain.

Par. Elfe might the world convince of levity
As well my undertakings, as your counfels:
But I atteft the Gods, your full confent
Gave wings to my propenfion, and cut off
All fears attending on fo dire a project.
For what, alas, can these my fingle arms?
What propugnation is in one man's valour,
To ftand the push and enmity of those
This quarrel would excite? yet I proteft,
Were I alone to pass the difficulties,

And had as ample Power, as I have Will,
Paris fhould ne'er retract what he had done,
Nor faint in the purfuit.

Pri. Paris, you speak

Like one befotted on your fweet delights;
You have the honey ftill, but these the gall;
So, to be valiant, is no praife at all.

Par. Sir, I propofe not merely to myself
The pleasures such a Beauty brings with it:
But I would have the foil of her fair
rape

Wip'd off, in honourable keeping her.

What reafon were it to the ranfack'd Queen,
Difgrace to your great worths, and fhame to me,
Now to deliver her poffeffion up,

On terms of bafe compulfion? can it be,
That fo degenerate a ftrain, as this,

Should once fet footing in your generous bofoms?

5 diftafte] Corrupt; change to a worse tafte.

There's

There's not the meaneft fpirit on our party,
Without a heart to dare, or fword to draw,
When Helen is defended: none fo noble,
Whofe life were ill beftow'd, or death unfam'd,
When Helen is the fubject. Then, I fay,
Well may we fight for her, whom, we know well,
The world's large spaces cannot parallel.

Helt. Paris and Troilus, you have both faid well;
And on the cause and question now in hand.
Have gloz'd; but fuperficially, not much
Unlike young men, whom Aristotle thought
Unfit to hear moral philofophy.

The reasons, you allege, do more conduce
To the hot paffion of distemper'd blood
Than to make up a free determination
'Twixt right and wrong, for pleafure and revenge
Have ears more deaf than adders, to the voice
Of any true decifion. Nature craves,
All dues be render'd to their owners; now
What nearer debt in all humanity,

Than wife is to the hufband? If this law
Of nature be corrupted through affection,
And that great minds, of partial indulgence
To their benummed wills, refift the fame;
? There is a law in each well-ordered nation,
To curb those raging appetites that are
Moft difobedient and refractory.
If Helen then be wife to Sparta's King,
As it is known fhe is, these moral laws
Of Nature, and of Nations, speak aloud
To have their back return'd. Thus to perfift
In doing wrong, extenuates not wrong,

But makes it much more heavy. Hector's opinion

6-benummed wills,-] That is, inflexible, immoveable, no longer obedient to fuperiour disection.

7 There is a law-] What the law does in every nation between individuals, justice ought to do between nations.

Is this in way of truth; yet ne'ertheless,
My sprightly brethren, I propend to you
In refolution to keep Helen ftill;

For 'tis a caufe that hath no mean dependance
Upon our joint and feveral dignities.

Trai. Why, there you touch'd the life of our defign; Were it not glory that we more affected

Than the performance of our having fpleens,
I would not with a drop of Trojan blood
Spent more in her defence. But, worthy Hector,
She is a theam of honour and renown;

A fpur to valiant and magnanimous deeds;
Whofe prefent courage may beat down our foes,
And Fame, in time to come, canonize us.
For, I prefume, brave Hector would not lofe
So rich advantage of a promis'd glory,
As fimiles upon the forehead of this action,
For the wide world's revenue,

Helt. I am yours,

You valiant off-fpring of great Priamus.
I have a roifting challenge fent amongst
The dull and factious nobles of the Greeks,
Will ftrike amazement to their drowsy fpirits.
I was advertis'd, their great General flept.
Whilft emulation in the army crept;
This, I prefume will wake him,

1

Is this in way of truth; —] Though confidering truth and juftice in this question, this is my opinion; yet as a queftion of honour, I think on it as you.

[Exeunt,

9the performance of our beav ing Spleens,] The execution of fpite and resentment.

emulation ] That is, envy, factious contention.

SCENE