| Country near Birnam wood. |
| [Drum and colours. Enter MALCOLM, SIWARD and YOUNG | ||
| SIWARD, MACDUFF, MENTEITH, CAITHNESS, ANGUS, | ||
| LENNOX, ROSS, and Soldiers, marching] |
| MALCOLM | Cousins, I hope the days are near at hand | ||
| That chambers will be safe. |
| MENTEITH | We doubt it nothing. |
| SIWARD | What wood is this before us? |
| MENTEITH | The wood of Birnam. | 5 |
| MALCOLM | Let every soldier hew him down a bough | ||
| And bear't before him: thereby shall we shadow | |||
| The numbers of our host and make discovery | |||
| Err in report of us. |
| Soldiers | It shall be done. | 10 |
| SIWARD | We learn no other but the confident tyrant | ||
| Keeps still in Dunsinane, and will endure | |||
| Our setting down before 't. |
| MALCOLM | 'Tis his main hope: | ||
| For where there is advantage to be given, | 15 | ||
| Both more and less have given him the revolt, | |||
| And none serve with him but constrained things | |||
| Whose hearts are absent too. |
| MACDUFF | Let our just censures | ||
| Attend the true event, and put we on | 20 | ||
| Industrious soldiership. |
| SIWARD | The time approaches | ||
| That will with due decision make us know | |||
| What we shall say we have and what we owe. | |||
| Thoughts speculative their unsure hopes relate, | 25 | ||
| But certain issue strokes must arbitrate: | |||
| Towards which advance the war. | |||
| [Exeunt, marching] |