That from the hunters' aim had ta'en a hurt,
Did come to languish; and, indeed, my lord,
The wretched animal heav'd forth such groans 36
That their discharge did stretch his leathern coat
Almost to bursting, and the big round tears
Cours'd one another down his innocent nose
In piteous chase; and thus the hairy fool, 40
Much marked of the melancholy Jaques,
Stood on the extremest verge of the swift brook,
Augmenting it with tears.
Duke S.But what said Jaques?
Did he not moralize this spectacle? 44
First Lord. O, yes, into a thousand similes.
First, for his weeping into the needless stream;
'Poor deer,' quoth he, 'thou mak'st a testament
As worldlings do, giving thy sum of more 48
To that which had too much': then, being there alone,
Left and abandon'd of his velvet friends;
''Tis right,' quoth he; 'thus misery doth part
The flux of company': anon, a careless herd, 52
Full of the pasture, jumps along by him
And never stays to greet him; 'Ay,' quoth Jaques,
'Sweep on, you fat and greasy citizens;
'Tis just the fashion; wherefore do you look 56
Upon that poor and broken bankrupt there?'
Thus most invectively he pierceth through
The body of the country, city, court,
Yea, and of this our life; swearing that we 60
Are mere usurpers, tyrants, and what's worse,
38 tears; cf. n.
39 Cours'd: pursued
44 moralize: interpret, give a moral sense to
46 needless: not in need, i.e., of more water
48 worldlings: men of this world (?)
50 velvet: i.e., because of their soft coats (?); cf. n.
52 flux of company; cf. n.
anon: presently
55 greasy: i.e., with excess prosperity
56 fashion: prevalent way, what is to be expected
58 invectively: with denunciation
