Trumpet sounds We have, great Agamemnon, here in Troy A prince call'd Hector,--Priam is his father,--Who in this dull and long-continued truce Is rusty grown: he bade me take a trumpet, And to this purpose speak. Kings, princes, lords!
If there be one among the fair'st of Greece That holds his honour higher than his ease, That seeks his praise more than he fears his peril, That knows his valour, and knows not his fear, That loves his mistress more than in confession, With truant vows to her own lips he loves, 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, wiser, fairer, truer, Than ever Greek did compass in his arms, And will to-morrow with his trumpet call Midway between your tents and walls of Troy, To rouse a Grecian that is true in love:
If any come, Hector shall honour him;
If none, he'll say in Troy when he retires, The Grecian dames are sunburnt and not worth The splinter of a lance. Even so much. AGAMEMNON This shall be told our lovers, Lord AEneas;
If none of them have soul in such a kind, We left them all at home: but we are soldiers;
And may that soldier 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. NESTOR Tell him of Nestor, one that was a man When Hector's grandsire suck'd: he is old now;
But if there be not in our Grecian host One noble man that hath one spark of fire, To answer for his love, tell him from me I'll hide my silver beard in a gold beaver And in my vantbrace put this wither'd brawn, And meeting him will tell him that my lady Was fairer than his grandam and as chaste As may be in the world: his youth in flood, I'll prove this truth with my three drops of blood. AENEAS Now heavens forbid such scarcity of youth! ULYSSES Amen. AGAMEMNON Fair Lord AEneas, let me touch your hand;
To our pavilion shall I lead you, sir.
Achilles shall have word of this intent;
So shall each lord of Greece, from tent to tent:
Yourself shall feast with us before you go And find the welcome of a noble foe.
Exeunt all but ULYSSES and NESTOR ULYSSES Nestor! NESTOR What says Ulysses? ULYSSES I have a young conception in my brain;
Be you my time to bring it to some shape. NESTOR What is't? ULYSSES This 'tis:
Blunt wedges rive hard knots: the seeded pride That hath to this maturity blown up In rank Achilles must or now be cropp'd, Or, shedding, breed a nursery of like evil, To overbulk us all. NESTOR Well, and how? ULYSSES This challenge that the gallant Hector sends, However it is spread in general name, Relates in purpose only to Achilles. NESTOR The purpose is perspicuous even as substance, Whose grossness little characters sum up:
And, in the publication, make no strain, But that Achilles, were his brain as barren As banks of Libya,--though, Apollo knows, 'Tis dry enough,--will, with great speed of judgment, Ay, with celerity, find Hector's purpose Pointing on him. ULYSSES And wake him to the answer, think you? NESTOR Yes, 'tis most meet: whom may you else oppose, That can from Hector bring his honour off, If not Achilles? Though't be a sportful combat, Yet in the trial much opinion dwells;
For here the Trojans taste our dear'st repute With their finest palate: and trust to me, Ulysses, Our imputation shall be oddly poised In this wild action; for the success, Although particular, shall give a scantling Of good or bad unto the general;
And in such indexes, although small pricks To their subsequent volumes, there is seen The baby figure of the giant mass Of things to come at large. It is supposed He that meets Hector issues from our choice And choice, being mutual act of all our souls, Makes merit her election, and doth boil, As 'twere from us all, a man distill'd Out of our virtues; who miscarrying, What heart receives from hence the conquering part, To steel a strong opinion to themselves?
Which entertain'd, limbs are his instruments, In no less working than are swords and bows Directive by the limbs. ULYSSES Give pardon to my speech:
Therefore 'tis meet Achilles meet not Hector.
Let us, like merchants, show our foulest wares, And think, perchance, they'll sell; if not, The lustre of the better yet to show, Shall show the better. Do not consent That ever Hector and Achilles meet;
For both our honour and our shame in this Are dogg'd with two strange followers. NESTOR I see them not with my old eyes: what are they? ULYSSES What glory our Achilles shares from Hector, Were he not proud, we all should share with him:
But he already is too insolent;
A nd we were better parch in Afric sun Than in the pride and salt scorn of his eyes, Should he 'scape Hector fair: if he were foil'd, Why then, we did our main opinion crush In taint of our best man. No, make a lottery;
And, by device, let blockish Ajax draw The sort to fight with Hector: among ourselves Give him allowance for the better man;
For that will physic the great Myrmidon Who broils in loud applause, and make him fall His crest that prouder than blue Iris bends.
If the dull brainless Ajax come safe off, We'll dress him up in voices: if he fail, Yet go we under our opinion still That we have better men. But, hit or miss, Our project's life this shape of sense assumes:
Ajax employ'd plucks down Achilles' plumes. NESTOR Ulysses, Now I begin to 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 Must tarre the mastiffs on, as 'twere their bone.