And we were better parch in Afric fun,
Than in the pride and salt scorn of his eyes,
Should he 'scape Hector fair. If he were foil'de.
Why, then we did our main opinion crush
In taint of our best man. No, make a lott'ry;
And by device let blockish Ajax draw
The fort to fight with Hector : 'mong ourselves,
Give him allowance as the worthier man;
For that will phyfic the great Myrmidon,
Who broils in loud applause, and make him fall
His crest, that prouder than blue fris bends..
If the.dull brainless Ajax come fafe off,
We'll dress him up in voices: if he fail,
Yet go we under our opinion till,
That we have better men. But, hit or miss,
Our project's life this shape of fenfe affumes,
Ajax employ'd, plucks down Achilles' plumes,

Neft. Ulysses, now I relish thy advice,
And I will give a taste of it forthwith
To Agamemnon; go we to him straight;
Two curs shall tame each other ; pride alone
Mult car the mastiffs on, as 'twere their bone. [Exeunt..

Ajax. T Hellores azamemnon—how if he had boils

The Grecian camp.
Enter Ajax and Therfites,
Herfites,

Ther. Agamemnon -full, all over, generally. [Talking to himself.

Ajax, Therfites,

Ther. And thole boils did run -fay fo- did not the General run? were not that a botchy core ?

Ajax. Dog!

Ther. Then there would come fome matter from him : I see none now.

rijax, Thou bitch.wolf's son, canst thou not hear? feel then.

[Strikes him. Ther. The plague of Greece upon thee, thou mongrel. beef witted Lord!

Ajax, Speak then, thou windiest leaven, speak; I will beat thee into handsomeness.

Ther, I shall sooner rail thee into wit and holiness; but I think thy horse will fooner con an oration, than thou learn a prayer without a book: thou canst strike, canst thou? a red murrain' o'thy jaile's tricks !

Ajax, Toads.ficol, learn ine the proclamation.

Ther. Dost thou think I have no sense, thou Itrik'st me thus ?

Ajax. The proclamation -Ther. Thou art proclaim'd a fool, I think. bijax. Do not, porcupine, do not ; my fingers itch.

Ther. I would thou didit icch from head to loot, and I had the scratching of thee; I would make thee the lothsom’st scab in Greece.

Ajax. I fay, the proclamation

Ther. Thou grumblest and railest every hour on Achilles, and thou art as full of envy at his greatness, as Cerberus is at Proserpina's beauty: ay, that thcu bark'lt at him.

Ajax. Mistress Therfites!
Ther. Thou should't strike him.
Ajax, Cobloat !

Ther. He would pound thee into shivers with his fift, as a failor breaks a bisket. Ajax. You whoreson cur !

[Beating him. Ther. Do, do. Ajax. Thou stool for a witch !

Ther. Ay, do, do, thou fodden-witted Lord ; thou haft no more brain than I have in my elbows: an Alfinego may tutor thee. Thou scurvy valiant ass I thou art here but to thresh Trojans, and thou art bought and fold among those of any wit, like a Barbarian Nave. If thou use to beat me, I will begin at thy heel, and tell what thou art by inches, thou thing of no bowels, thou !

Ajax. You dog!
Ther. You scurvy Lord!
Ajax. You cur!

[Beating him. Ther, Mars his ideot ! do, rudeness ; do, camel, do, do.

t

:

SCENE II, Enter Achilles and Patroclus.

Achil. Why, how now, Ajax ? wherefore do you How now, Therfites? what's the matter, man? [this?

Ther. You see him there, do you?
Achil. ly, what's the matter?
Ther. Nay, look upon him.
Achil, su I do, what's the matter ?
Ther. Nay, but regard him well.
Achil. Well, why, I do so.

Ther. But yet you look not well upon him for who spever you take him to be, he is Ajax.

Achil. I know that, fool.
Ther, Avs but that fool knows not himself,
Ajax. Therefore I beat thee.

Ther, Lo, lo, lo, lo, what modicums of wit he ut. ters; his evalions have ears thus long. I have bobbid his brain, more than he has beat my bones : I will buy nine sparrows for a penny, and his pia mater is not worth the ninth part of a sparrow. This Lord (Achilles) Ajax, who wears his wit in his bely, and his guts in his head, I'll tell you what I say of him. Achil, What?

[Ajax offers to strike him, Achilles interposes. Ther, I say this Ajax Achil. Nay, good Ajax. Ther Has not so much witAchil. Nay, I must hold you.

her. As will stop the eye of Helen's needdle for whom he comes to fight.

Achil. Peace, fool !

Ther. I would have peace and quietness, but the fool will not : he there, that he, look you there.

Ajax. O thou damn'd cur, I shall-
Achil. Will

you
set your

wit to a fool's ? Ther. No, I warrant you ; for a fool's will shame it. Pat. Good words, Therfites. Achil. What's the quarrel ? Ajax I bad the vile owl go learn me the tenor of the proclamation, and be rails upon me.

Ther. I serye thee not.
Ajax. We'll, gq to, go to.

Will, with a trumpet, 'twixt our tents and Troy,

Ther. I fcrve here voluntary.

Achil, Your lait service was fufferance, 'twas pot vo. luntary ; no man is beaten voluntary; Ajax was here the voluntary, and you as under an impress. Ther, Ev'n fo

-A

great deal of your wit too lies in your finews, or else there be lyars. Hector shall have a great catch, if he knock out either of your brains; he were as good crack a fulty nut with no kernel.

Achil. What, with me too, Therfires ?

Ther. There's Ulyffes, and old Neitor (whose wit was mouldy-ere your grandfires had nails on their toes), yoke you like drait oxen, and make you plow up the wair.

Achil. What! what!
Ther. Yes, good footh; to Achilles ! to Ajax ! to-
Ajax. I shail cut out your tongue.

Ther. 'Tis no matter, I shall speak as much as thou afterwards.

Pat. No more words, Therfites.

Ther. I will hold my peace, when Achilles' brach bids me, shall I ?

Achil. There's for you, Patroclus.

Ther. I will see you hang'd like clodpoles, ere I come any more to your tents. I will keep where there is wit stirring, and leave the faction of fools. [Exit.

Pat. A good riddance.

Achil. Marry, this, Sir, is proclaim'd through all our That Hector, by the fifth hour of the sun, [hoft,

To.morrow morning call fome knight to arms,
That hath a stomach, such a one that dare
Maintain i know not whar : 'tis trash, farewel.

Ajax Farewel! who shall anfwer him?

Achil. I know not. 'tis put to lott'ry; otherwise He knew his man. Ajax. O, meaning you: I'll go learn more of it.

[Exeunt.

SCENE HI. Changes to Priam's palace in Troy. Enter Priam, Hector, Troilus, Paris, and Helenus.

Pri. After so many hours, lives, fpeeches fpent.

Thus once again says Nestor from the Greeks :
Deliver Helen, and all damage else
(As honour, lose of time, travel, expence,
Wounds, friends, and what else dear that is consumid
In hot digestion of this cormorant war)
Shall be struck off. Hector, what tay you to't ?

Hect. Though no man lefser fear the Greeks chan I,
As far as touches my particular ; yet
There is no lady of more softer bowels,
More spungy to suck in the sense of fear,
More ready to cry out, Who knows what follows ?
Than Hector is. The wound of peace is surety,
Surety secure ; but modest doubt is callid
The beacon of the wise ; the tent that searches
To th' bottom of the worst. Let Helen go.
Since the first sword was drawn about this question,
Every tithe soul 'mongst many thousand dismes
Hath been as dear as Helen : I mean, of ours.
If we have lost so many tenths of ours,
To guard a thing not ours, not worth to us
(Had it our name) the value of one ten;
What merit's in that reason which denies
The yielding of her up?

Tro. Fie, fie, my brother :
Weigh you the worth and honour of a King
(So great as our dread father) in a scale
Of common ounces? will you with counters sum
The vast proportion of his infinite ?
And buckle in a waste moft fathomless,
With spans and inches so diminutive
As fears and reasons! fie for godly shame !

Hel. No marvel though you bite fo sharp at reasons, You are so empty of them. Should not our father Bear the great sway of his affairs with reasons; Because your speech hath none, that tells hin so ?

Troi. You are for dreams and Numbers, brother priest, You fur your gloves with reasons.

Here are your reaYou know an enemy interds you harm; [lons. You know a sword employ'd is perilous ; And reason flies the object of all harm. Who marvels then, when Helenus beholds A Grecian and his sword, if he do set