SCENE III Dunsinane. A Room in the Castle.

Enter MACBETH, Doctor, and Attendants.

Maco. Bring me no more reports; let them fly all; Til Birnam wood remove to Dunsinane,

I cannot taint with fear. What's the boy Malcolm? Was he not born of woman? The spirits that know Al mortal consequences, have pronoune'd me thus: Four nut. Macbeth; no man that's born of women, Shul i'r we per upon thee.

thanes

Then fly, false

And mingle with the Engüsh epicures1:

The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear,
Shall never sugg with doubt, nor shake with fear.

Enter a Servant.

The der damn thee black, then cream-f

Where goat'st thou that goose look!

Sr. There is ten thousand

-fac'd loons!

Mock. Go, prick thy face, and over-red thy fear, Thon hly-liver'd boy. What saldiers, patch*? Death of thy soul! those Einen cheeks of thine

1 Shakespeare derived this thought from Holished:-" The Scottish people before had no knowledge of nor understanding of fine fare or ricons surfent; yet after they had once tasted the sweet poisoned bait thereof." &c. those superfuities which came into the realme of Scotland with Englishmen."-Hist. of Scotland, P 179.

To sag, or swag, is to hang down by its own weight, or by an

overload.

* Cream-fac'd loom. This word, which signifies a base abject fellow, is now only used in Scotland; it was formerly common in England, but spelt lown, and is justly considered by Horne Tooke as the past participle of to low or abase. Lout has the same origin. 4 Patch, an appellat ontempt, signifying fool or low wretch.

Are counsellors to fear. What soldiers, whey-face? Serv. The English force, so please you.

Macb. Take thy face hence. [Exit Serv.]-Seyton!
I am sick at heart,

When I behold-Seyton, I say!—This push
Will chair me ever, or disseat me now 5.
I have liv'd long enough: my way of life
Is fall'n into the sear6, the yellow leaf:
And that which should accompany old age,
As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends,
I must not look to have; but, in their stead,
Curses, not loud, but deep, mouth-honour, breath,
Which the
poor heart would fain deny, and dare not.

Seyton !

The folio has "Will cheere me ever." The correction was suggested by Dr. Percy.

6 Sear is dry, withered. We have the same expression and sentiment in Spenser's Pastorals :

"Also my lustful leaf is drie and seure."

Johnson would read " May of life." It must be confessed that it conveys a pleasing image, and might be supported, but the commentators have mistaken the phrase, way of life (Henley however is to be excepted), which Mr. Gifford has shown to be a simple periphrasis for life. A few examples will make this clear:— "If that when I was mistress of myself, And in my way of youth clear and untainted."

"In way of youth I did enjoy one friend."

Massinger's Roman Actor.

A very Woman.

i. e. in my youth.

"So much nobler

Thierry and Theodoret.

i. e. your justice.

Shall be your way of justice."

"Thus ready for the way of life or death,

I wait the sharpest blow."

Pericles.

i. e. for life or death. The Latin cursus vitæ has the same signifi

cation.

"To return to Macbeth: the sere and yellow leuf is the commencement of the autumn of life; to this he has attained, and he laments, in a strain of great pathos and beauty, that it is unaccompanied by those blessings which render old age supportable. As his manhood was without virtue, so he has now before him the certain prospect of an old age without honour."

Enter SEYTON.

Sey. What is your gracious pleasure?

Macb.

What news more?

Sey. All is confirm'd, my lord, which was reported. Macb. I'll fight, till from my bones my flesh be

hack'd.

Give me my armour.

Sey.

Mach. I'll put it on.

'Tis not needed yet.

Send out more horses, skirr? the country round;
Hang those that talk of fear.-Give me mine armour.
How does your patient, doctor?

Not so sick, my lord,

Doct.
As she is troubled with thick-coming fancies,

That keep her from her rest.

Macb.
Cure her of that:
Canst thou not minister to a mind diseas'd;
Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow;
Raze out the written troubles of the brain;
And, with some sweet oblivious antidote,
Cleanse the stuff'd bosom of that perilous stuff9
Which weighs upon the heart?

Doct.

Must minister to himself.

Therein the patient

Macb. Throw physick to the dogs, I'll none of it.— Come, put mine armour on; give me my staff:—

7 Skirr, i. e. scour the country round.

8 The following very remarkable passage in the Amadigi of Bernardo Tasso, which bears a striking resemblance to the words of Macbeth, was first pointed out in Mr. Weber's edition of Ford :"Ma chi puote con erbe, od argomenti Guarir l'infermità del intelletto?"

Cant. xxxvi. St. 37. The "nullis medicabilis herbis" of Ovid of course suggested it. 9 It has been proposed to read grief here, but the iteration stuff'd and stuff, though now displeasing to our ears, Malone has shown from numerous similar examples of repetition in the poet, was likely to occur. To cleanse the bosom of grief is a thought that would have hardly entered his mind.

10

Seyton, send out.-Doctor, the thanes fly from me :—
Come. sir. despatch :-If thou couldst, doctor, cast
The water of my land 1o, find her disease,
And purge it to a sound and pristine health,
I would applaud thee to the very echo,

That should applaud again.-Pull't off, I say.—
What rhubarb, senna11, or what purgative drug,
Would scour these English hence?—Hear'st thou of
them?

Doct. Ay, my good lord; your royal preparation Makes us hear something.

Macb.

Bring it after me.

I will not be afraid of death and bane,

Till Birnam forest come to Dunsinane.

[Exit.

Doct. Were I from Dunsinane away and clear,

Profit again should hardly draw me here.

[Exit.

SCENE IV. Country near Dunsinane: A Wood

in view.

Enter, with Drum and Colours, MALCOLM, old SIWARD
and his Son, MACDUFF, MENTETH, CATHNESS,
ANGUS, LENOX, Rosse, and Soldiers, marching.
Mal. Cousins, I hope the days are near at hand
That chambers will be safe.

Ment.

We doubt it nothing.

Siw. What wood is this before us?
Ment.

The wood of Birnam.

Mal. Let every soldier hew him down a bough1, And bear't before him; thereby shall we shadow

10 To cast the water was the empiric phrase for finding out disorders, used by the water doctors.

"What rhubarb, senna. The first folio reads cyme; the second cany. The emendation is Rowe's.

A similar incident is recorded by Olaus Magnus, in his Northern History, lib. vii. cap. xx. De Strategemate Hachonis per Frondes.

The numbers of our host, and make discovery
Err in report of us.

Sold.

It shall be done.

Siw. We learn 'no other, but the confident tyrant Keeps still in Dunsinane, and will endure

Our setting down before't.

Mal.

'Tis his main hope: For where there is advantage to be gone?,

Both more and less3 have given him the revolt;
And none serve with him but constrained things,
Whose hearts are absent too.

Macd.

Let our just censures

The time approaches,

Attend the true event, and put we on
Industrious soldiership.

Siv.

That will with due decision make us know
What we shall say we have, and what we owe1.
Thoughts speculative their unsure hopes relate;
But certain issue strokes must arbitrate:
Towards which, advance the war. [Exeunt, marching.

SCENE V. Dunsinane. Within the Castle.

Enter, with Drums and Colours, MACBETH, SEYTON, and Soldiers.

Macb. Hang out our banners, on the outward walls: The is still, They come.

cry

2 The old copy reads:

Our castle's strength

"For where there is advantage to be given." Johnson thought it should be "advantage to be gone," and I now think he was right. In my former edition I had said, we might perhaps read:- "For where there is advantage to be gain'd.' 3 More and less, i. e. greater and less, or high and low, those of all ranks.

What we shall say we have, and what we owe. i. e. when we shall know both our rights and duties,