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That do cóntrive how many hands shall strike,
When fitnefs calls them on; and know, by measure
Of their obfervant toil, the enemies' weight,-
Why, this hath not a finger's dignity;

They call this-bed work mappery, closet war:
So that the ram, that batters down the wall,
For the great fwing and rudeness of his poize,
They place before his hand that made the engines
Or thofe, that with the fineness of their fouls
by reafon guide his execution.

Nef. Let this be granted, and Achilles' horfe
Makes many Thetis fons..

[Trumpet beard. Aga. What trumpet's that? look, Menelaus. Men. From Troy

Enter Eneas.

Aga. What would you 'fore our tent ?

Ene. Is this great Agamemnon's tent, I pray you?
Aga. Even this. ·

Ene. May one, that is a herald, and a prince,
Do a fair meffage to his kingly ears?

"Aga. With furety ftronger than Achilles' arm "'Fore all the Greekish heads, which with one voice "Call Agamemnon head and general.

Ene. Fair leave, and large fecurity. How may "Aftranger to those most imperial looks "Know them from eyes of other mortals-? "Aga. How?

"Ene. I afk, that I might waken reverence, "And bid the cheek be ready with a blush "Modest as morning, when the coldly eyes › "The youthful Phœbus :

,

"Which is that god in office; guiding men? "Which is the high and mighty Agamemnon?

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Aga, This Trojan fcorns us; or the men of Troy

"Are ceremonious courtiers.

"Ene. Courtiers as free, as debonair, unarm'd, "As bending angels; that's their fame in peace: "But when they would feem foldiers, they have galls, "Good arms, ftrong joints, true fwords; and, Jove's "accord,

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"Nothing

"Nothing fo full of heart. But peace, Eneas,
"Peace, Trojan; lay thy finger on thy lips!
"The worthiness of praise diftains his worth,
"If that the prais'd himself bring the praise førth :
"What the repining enemy commends,

"That breath fame blows; that praise, sole pure, tran"fcends..

"Aga. Sir, you of Troy, call you yourself Eneas? "Ene. Ay, Greek, that is my name.

"Aga. What's your affair, I pray you ?

"Ene. Sir, pardon; 'tis for Agamemnon's ears. "Aga. He hears nought privately, that comes from Troy.

"Ene. Nor I from Trey come not to whisper him: "I bring a trumpet to awake his ear;

"To fet his fenfe on the attentive bent,,

"And then to speak.

Aga. Speak frankly as the wind';:

"It is not Agamemnon's fleeping hour::

"That thou fhalt know, Trojan, he is awake, "He tells thee fo himself.

Ene. Trumpet, blow loud,

Send thy brafs voice through all thefe lazy tents :-
And every Greek of mettle, let him know,
What Troy means fairly shall be spoke aloud.

[Trumpet Sounds.

We have, great Agamemnon, here in Troy
A prince called Hector, Priam is his father,
Who in this dull and long continu'd truce
Is rufty grown; he bad me take a trumpet,
And to this purpofe fpeak. Kings, princes, lords!
If there be one, among the fair'it of Greece,
That holds his honour higher than his ease;
That feeks his praife more than he fears his peril
That knows his valour, and knows not his fear;
That loves his miftrefs more than in confeffion,
(With truant vows to her own lips he love:)
And dare avow her beauty, and her worth,
In other arms than hers, -to him this challenge.
Hector, in view of Trojans and of Greeks,
Shall make it good, or do his best to do it,

He hath a lady, wifer, fairer, truer,

Than ever Greek did compass in his arms;
And will to-morrow with his trumpet call,
Mid-way between your tents and walls of Troy,
To roufe a Grecian that is true in love:

If any come, Hector fhall honour him;
If none, he'll lay in Troy, when he retires,
The Grecian dames are fun-burnt, and not worth
The splinter of a lance. Even fo much *.

Aga. This thall be told our lovers, lord Æneas;
If none of them have foul in fuch a kind,

We left them all at home: But we are foldiers;
And may that foldier a mere recreant prove,
That means not, hath not, or is not in love!
If then one is, or hath, or means to be,
That one meets Hector; if none else, I am he.
Nef, Tell him of Neftor, one that was a man
When Hector's grandfire fuck'd: he is old now;
But, if there be not in our Grecian hoft

One noble man, that hath one spark of fire
To answer for his love, tell him from me,—»-
I'll hide my filver breaft-plate beard in a gold beaver,
And in my vauntbrace put this wither'd brawn ;
And, meeting him, will tell him, That my lady
Was fairer than his grandame, and as chafte
As may be in the world: His youth in flood,
I'll pawn this truth with my three drops of blood.
Ene. Now heavens forbid fuch fcarcity of youth!
Aga. Amen.-

Fair lord neas, let me touch your hand;

To our pavilion shall I lead you, fir.

Achilles fhall have word of this intent ;;

So thail each lord of Greece, from tent to tent:

Yourself thall feaft with us before you go,

And find the welcome of a noble foe.

Uly. Neftor,-

Ne. What lays Ulysses?

[Exeunt oll but Uly, and Nef.

This challenge, though a whimsical one in its nature, has fome... thing very manly and fpirited in it.

Uly. I have a young conception in my brain, Be you my time to bring it to fome shape.

Nef. What is't?

Uly. Blunt wedges rive hard knots: The feeded pride That hath to this maturity blown up

In rank Achilles, muft or now be cropp'd,

Or, hedding, breed a nursery of like evil,
To over-bulk us all.

Nef. Well, fir, and how?

Uly. This challenge that the gallant Heor fends, However it is spread in general name,

Relates in purpose only to Achilles.

Nef. The purpose is perfpicuous even as substance, "Whofe groffness little characters fum up:

And, in the publication, make no ftrain, "But that Achilles, were his brain as barren "As banks of Lybia,-though, Apollo knows, ""Tis dry enough, will with great speed of judgment, "Ay, with celerity, find Hector's purpose

"Pointing on him.

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Uly. And wake him to the answer, think you 2 "Nef. Yes;

It is moft meet; whom may you elfe oppose,

That can from Hector bring those honours off,
If not Achilles?"Though't be a fportful combat,
"Yet in the trial much opinion dwells;
"For here the Trojans taste our dear'st repute
"With their fin'ft palate: And truft to me, Ulyffes,
"Our imputation fhall be oddly poiz'd

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In this wild action; for the fuccefs,

Although particular, fhall give a fcantling
Of good or bad unto the general;

"And in fuch indexes, although fmall pricks
"To their fubféquent volumes, there is feen
"The baby-figure of the giant mafs

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Of things to come at large." It is fuppos'd,
He, that meets Hector, iffues from our choice;
And choice, being mutual act of all our fouls,
Makes merit her election; and doth boil,
As 'twere, from forth us all, a man distill'd
Out of our virtues; who miscarrying,

What

What heart receives from hence, a conquering part,
To feel a ftrong opinion to themselves?

Uly. Give pardon to my fpeech ;-therefore 'tis meet, Achilles meet not Hector: Let us, like merchants,

Firft fhew foul wares, and think perchance they'll fell; If not,

The luftre of the better shall exceed,

By fhewing the worse first. Do not confent,
That ever Hector and Achilles meet;

For both our honour and our shame, in this,
Are dog'd with two ftrange followers.
Nef. What are they?

I fee them not with my old eyes; what are they?
Uly. What glory our Achilles fhares from Hector,
Were he not proud, we all should share with him:
But he already is too infolent;

And we were better parch in Afric fun,

Than in the pride and falt-fcorn of his eyes,
Should he 'fcape Hector fair: If he were foil'd,
Why, then we did our main opinion crush
In taint of our beft man. No, make a lottery;
And, by device, let blockifh Ajax draw

The fort to fight with Hector: Among ourselves,
Give him allowance for the better man ;
For that will phyfic the great Myrmidon,

Who broils in loud applaufe; and make him fall
His creft, that prouder than blue Iris bends.
If the dull brainless Ajax come fafe off,
We'll drefs him up in voices: if he fail,
Yet go we under our opinion ftill,

That we have better men. But, hit or miss,
Our project's life this fhape of fenfe affumes,-
Ajax employ'd plucks down Achilles' plumes
Nef. Now I begin to relish thy advice;
And I will give a taste of it forthwith
To Agamemnon: go we to him ftraight,
Two curs fhall tame each other; pride alone

† Must tar the maftiffs on, as 'twere their bone. [Exeunt.

• Ulysses fhows much of the fly, flow politician, respecting Achildes; but no great degree of honesty.

† A most low idea concludes this A&; which is through the whole uninterefting, and by no means advantageously calculated for sepresentation,

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