Achil. Where, where? art thou come? Why, my cheese, my digestion, why hast thou not served thyfelf in to my table so many meals? Come; what's Agamemnon! Ther. Thy commander, Achilles. Then tell me, Patroclus, what's Achilles ? Patr. Thy lord, Thersites. Then tell me, I pray thee, what's thyself? Ther. Thy knower, Patroclus. Patroclus, what art thou ? Patr. Thou must tell that know'st. Achil. O tell, tell Then tell me, Ther. I'll decline the whole question. Agamemnon commands Achilles; Achilles is my lord; I am Patroclus's knower; and Patroclus is a fool. Patr. You rascal!- Ther. Peace, fool, I have not done. Achil. He is a privileg'd man.-Proceed, Thersites, Ther. Agamemnon is a fool; Achilles is a fool; Thersites is a fool; and (as aforesaid) Patroclus is a fool. Achil. Derive this; come. Ther. Agamemnon is a fool to offer to command Achilles; Achilles is a fool to be commanded of Agamemnon; Thersites is a fool to serve such a fool; and Patroclus is a fool positive. Patr. Why am I a fool ? Ther. Make that demand 3 of the prover. It fuffices me, thou art. -decline the whole question.-) Deduce the question from the first cafe to the last. JOHNSON. 2-Patroclus is a fool.] The four next speeches are not in the quarto. JOHNSON. -of the prover.-) So the quarto. JOHNSON. The folio reads, of thy creator. STEEVENS, Enter Enter Agamemnon, Ulyffes, Neftor, Diomedes, and Ajax. Look you, who comes here? Achil. Patroclus, I'll speak with no body. - Come in with me, Thersites. [Exit. Ther. Here is such patchery, such juggling, and such knavery! All the argument is, a cuckold, and a whore: a good quarrel to draw emulous factions, and bleed to death upon. 4 Now the dry ferpigo on the fubject! and war and lechery confound all! (Exit. Aga. Where is Achilles ? Patr. Within his tent; but ill dispos'd, my lord. Aga. Let it be known to him, that we are here. 5 He fhent our messengers; and we lay by Let him be told fo; left, perchance, he think Patr. I shall so say to him. [Exit. Ulyf. We faw him at the opening of his tent; He is not fick. Ajax. Yes, lion-fick, fick of a proud heart. You may call it melancholy, if you will favour the man; but, by my head, 'tis pride. But why, why?-let him shew us the cause. A word, my lord. [To Agamemnon. Neft. What moves Ajax thus to bay at him? Ulyf. Achilles hath inveigled his fool from him. Nest. Who? Thersites? Ulyf. He. Neft. Then will Ajax lack matter, if he have lost his argument. 4 Now the dry, &c] This is added in the folio. JOHNSON. 5 He SENT our messengers ;-) This nonsense should be read, He SHENT our messengers; i. e. rebuked, rated. 1 WARBURTON. i Ulyf. No; you fee, he is his argument, that has his argument;-Achilles. Neft. Ail the better; their fraction is more our wish than their faction: but it was a strong 6 compofure, a fool could disunite. Ulyf. The amity, that wisdom knits not, folly may easily untye. Re-enter Patroclus. Here comes Patroclus. Nest. No Achilles with him. Ulyf. The elephant hath joints; but none for courtefy; His legs are for necessity, not for flexure. Patr. Achilles bids me say, he is much forry, Aga. Hear you, Patroclus! 6 - compofure,-) So reads the quarto very properly; but the folio, which the moderns have followed, has, it was a trong COUNSEL. JOHNSON. 7 noble state, Person of high dignity; spoken of Agamemnon. JOHNSON. Noble ftate rather means the stately train of attending nobles swhom you bring with you. STEEVENS. And And under-honeft; in self-assumption greater himself, Here tend the savage strangeness he puts on; We'll none of him, but let him, like an engine Bring action hither, this can't go to war: "A ftirring dwarf we do allowance give " Before a fleeping giant;"-tell him fo. Patr. I shall, and bring his answer presently. [Exit. Aga. In fecond voice we'll not be fatisfied, We come to fpeak with him.-Ulyffes, enter you. Exit Ulyffes. Ajax. What is he more than another ? Ajax. Is he fo much? Do you not think, he thinks himself A better man than I am? Aga. No question. Ajax. Will you fubfcribe his thought, and fay, be is? As wife, and no less noble, much more gentle, Ajax. Why should a man be proud? How doth pride grow? I know not what it is. 8 -under-write] To Subscribe, in Shakespeare, is to obey. JOHNSON. His pettish lunes, -) This is Hanmer's emendation of his pettish lines. The old quarto reads, His course and time. This speech is unfaithfully printed in modern editions. JOHNS. Aga. Your mind is the clearer, Ajax, and your virtues 1 The fairer. He that's proud eats up himself: Re-enter Ulyffes. Ajax. I do hate a proud man, as I hate the engendering of toads. Nest. [Afide.] And yet he loves himself: is it not strange ? Ulyf. Achilles will not to the field to-morrow. Ulyf. He doth rely on none; Aga. Why will he not, upon our fair request, Aga. Let Ajax go to him.- Ulyf. O, Agamemnon, let it not be fo! We'll confecrate the steps that Ajax makes When they go from Achilles. Shall the proud lord, That |