A Cursory History of Swearing. Julian Sharman
take an oath upon their rapier’s hilt to carry themselves honourably in their profession.[6] The gravity with which this form of conjuration is approached by Hamlet’s followers is evident from the passage:—
| “Hor. Mar. | } | My lord, we will not. |
| Hamlet. Nay, but swear it. | ||
| Hor. In faith, my lord, not I. | ||
| Ghost. (beneath). Swear! | ||
| Hamlet. Ha, ha, boy! say’st thou so? art there, true-penny? Come on—you hear this fellow in the cellarage, Consent to swear. | ||
| Hor. Propose the oath, my lord. | ||
| Hamlet. Never to speak of this that you have seen, Swear by my sword.” | ||
The ground that we have thus far traversed is really one of a remarkable struggle, that has not abated even in our time. It is not the intention of this essay to follow the history of judicial oath-taking, or of the attestations that would seem to be demanded by conscience or religion. But it must be remembered that the subject of vituperative swearing is so interwoven with that of these legal and religious ordinances, that the consideration of them must be frequently forced upon us. But whilst doing so it should be no less borne in mind that we are never really losing sight of the object we have in view. We aim simply at disinterring a neglected, possibly a justly neglected, chapter in the world’s social history, and are called upon to judge both of the tree and its fruit, of the seed and the grain.
CHAPTER III.
THE BRITISH SHIBBOLETH.
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