SCENE_III-Another part of the field. Flourish. Enter King Edward, in triumph; with Clarence, Gloster, and the rest. 'K. Edw. Thus far our fortune keeps an upward course, And we are grac'd with wreaths of victory. 'But, in the midst of this bright-shining day, 'I spy a black, suspicious, threat'ning cloud, "That will encounter with our glorious sun, 'Ere he attain his caseful western bed: That there's no hop'd-for mercy with the brothers More than with ruthless waves, with sands, and rocks. Why, courage, then! what cannot be avoided, * "T'were childish weakness to lament, or fear. * Prince. Methinks, a woman of this valiant spirit Should, if a coward heard her speak these words, * Infuse his breast with magnanimity, * And make him, naked, foil a man at arms. queenFor, did I but suspect a fearful man, 'I speak not this, as doubting any here: 'He should have leave to go away betimes; Lest, in our need, he might infect another, And make him of like spirit to himself. 'If any such be here, as God forbid! 'Let him depart, before we need his help. 'I mean, my lords,-those powers, that the Hath rais'd in Gallia, have arriv'd our coast, 'And, as we hear, march on to fight with us. Clar. A little gale will soon disperse that cloud, *And blow it to the source from whence it came : Thy very beams will dry those vapours up; *For every cloud engenders not a storm. *Glo. The queen is valu'd thirty thousand strong, 'And Somerset, with Oxford, fled to her: If she have time to breathe, be well assur'd, Her faction will be full as strong as ours. K. Edw. We are advértis'd by our loving friends, That they do hold their course toward Tewksbury; "We having now the best at Barnet field, 'Will thither straight, for willingness rids way; And, as we march, our strength will be augmented In every county as we go along. Strike up the drum; cry-Courage and away. [Exeunt. SCENE IV.-Plains near Tewksbury. March. Enter Queen Margaret, Prince Edward, Somerset, Oxford and soldiers. * Q. Mar. Great lords, wise men ne'er sit and weil their loss, But cheerly seek how to redress their harms. "What though the mast be now blown over-board, "The cable broke, the holding anchor lost, 'And half our sailors swallow'd in the flood? 'Yet lives our pilot still: Is't meet, that he 'Should leave the helm, and, like a fearful lad, With tearful eyes add water to the sea, *And give more strength to that which hath too much; *Whiles, in his moan, the ship splits on the rock, *Which industry and courage might have saved? Ah, what a shame! ah, what a fault were this! Say, Warwick was our anchor; What of that? 'And Montague our top-mast; What of him? Our slaughter'd friends the tackles; What of these? Why, is not Oxford here another anchor? And Somerset another goodly mast? The friends of France our shrouds and tacklings? And, though unskilful, why not Ned and I For once allow'd the skilful pilot's charge? 'We will not from the helm, to sit and weep ;, * But keep our course, though the rough wind say -no, From shelves and rocks that threaten us with wreck. * As good to chide the waves, as speak them fair. And what is Edward, but a ruthless sea? What Clarence, but a quicksand of deceit.? *And Richard, but a ragged fatal rock? *All these the enemies to our poor bark. *Say, you can swim; alas, 'tis but a while: *Tread on the sand; why, there you quickly sink: * Bestride the rock; the tide will wash you of Or else you famish, that's a threefold death. This speak I, lords, to let you understand, In case some one of you would fly from us, (2) Unsay, deny. (1) Know. And warriors faint! why, 'twere perpetual shame. Go home to bed, and, like the owl by day, 'Som. And he, that will not fight for such a hope, 'If he arise, be mock'd and wonder'd ́at. *Q. Mar. Thanks, gentle Somerset ;-swee! Oxford, thanks. *Prince. And take his thanks, that yet hath nothing else. March. Enter, at a distance, King Edward, Clarence, Gloster, and forces. 'K. Edw. Brave followers, yonder stands the thorny wood, Which, by the heavens' assistance, and your strength, 'Must by the roots be hewn up yet ere night. * I need not add more fuel to your fire, For well I wot,' ye blaze to burn them out: *Give signal to the fight, and to it, lords. Q. Mar. Lords, knights, and gentlemen, what I should say, My tears gainsay;2 for every word I speak, 'Ye see, I drink the water of mine eyes. "Therefore, no more but this :-Henry, your sovereign, 'Is prisoner to the foe; his state usurp'd, 'His realm a slaughter-house, his subjects slain, His statutes cancell'd, and his treasure spent ; 'And yonder is the wolf, that makes this spoil. You fight in justice: then, in God's name, lords, 'Be valiant, and give signal to the fight, Alar [Exeunt both armies. SCENE V.-Another part of the same. ums; Excursions: and afterwards a Retreat. Then Enter King Edward, Clarence, Gloster, and forces; with Queen Margaret, Oxford, and Somerset, prisoners. 'K. Edw. Now,here a period of tumultuour broils Away with Oxford to Hammes' Cast straight: (3) A pasts in Picard For Somerset, off with his guilty head. And men ne'er spend their fury on a child. Q. Mar. So part we sadly in this troublous world, K. Edw. Is proclamation made,-that, who * Shall have a high reward, and he his life? K. Edw. Bring forth the gallant, let us hear What! can so young a thorn begin to prick! How sweet a plant have you untimely cropp'd! 'You have no children, butchers! if you had, 'The thought of them would have stirr'd up re morse: But, if you ever chance to have a child, Look in his youth to have him so cut off, 'As deathsmen! you have rid this sweet young prince! K. Edw. Away with her; go, bear her hence perforce. Q. Mar. Nay, never bear me hence, despatch me here; Here sheath thy sword, I'll pardon thee my death: Clar. Didst thou not hear me swear, I would Q. Mar. Ah, that thy father had been so resolv'd! Q. Mar. Ay, But thou usest to forswear 'hyself; coat, And ne'er have stol'n the breech from Lancaster. back rather. 'K. Edw. Peace, wilful boy, or I will charm2 your tongue. Clar. Untutor'd lad, thou art too malapert. Prince. I know my duty, you are all undutiful: Lascivious Edward,-and thou perjur'd George,And thou misshapen Dick,-I tell ye all, I am your better, traitors as ye are ; And thou usurp'st my father's right and mine. * Clar. And there's for twitting me with perjury. Q. Mar. O, kill me too! [Clar. stabs him. [Offers to kill her. hold, for we have Glo. Why should she live, to fill the world with words ?3 'K. Edw. What! doth she swoon? use means for her recovery. Glo. Clarence, excuse me to the king my brother: 'I'll hence to London on a serious matter: 'Ere ye come there, be sure to hear some news. Clar. What? what? 'Glo. The Tower, the Tower! [Exit. 'Q. Mar. O, Ned, sweet Ned! speak to thy 'Canst thou not speak?-O raitors! murderers!- (1) The prince calls Richard, for his crookedness, Æsop. (2) i. e. I will compel you to be as silent as if You were deprived of speech by enchantment. 4 What! wilt thou not? where is that devil's butcher, Hard-favour'd Richard? Richard, where art thou? Thou art not here: Murder is thy alms-deed; Petitioners for blood thou ne'er put'st back. 'K. Edw. Away, I say; I charge ye, bear her hence. Q. Mar. So come to you, and yours, as to this prince! [Exit, led out forcibly. K. Edie. Where's Richard gone? Clar. To London, all in post; and, as I guess, To make a bloody supper in the Tower. K. Edo. He's sudden, if a thing comes in his head. Where my poor young was lim'd, was caught and Let hell make crook'd my mind to answer it. kill'd. 'Glo. Why, what a peevish' fool was that Crete, I have no brother, I am like no brother. That taught his son the office of a fowl? And yet, for all his wings, the fool was drown'd. 'K. Hen. I, Dædalus; my poor boy, Icarus; Thy father, Minos, that denied our course; The sun, that sear'd the wings of my sweet 'Thy brother Edward; and thyself, the sea, "Whose envious gulf did swallow up his life. Ah, kill me with thy weapon, not with words! 'My breast can better brook thy dagger's point, Than can my ears that tragic history. But wherefore dost thou come? is't for my life? Glo. Think'st thou I am an executioner? K. Hen. A persecutor, I am sure, thou art; "If murdering innocents be executing, "Why, then thou art an executioner. Glo. Thy son I kill'd for his presumption. K. Hen. Hadst thou been kill'd, when first thou didst presume, Thou hadst not liv'd to kill a son of mine. And thus I prophesy,-that many a thousand, 'Which now mistrust no parcel of my fear: And many an old man's sigh, and many a widow's, And many an orphan's water-standing eye,Men for their sons, wives for their husbands' fate, 'And orphans for their parents' timeless death,'Shall rue the hour that ever thou wast born. The owl shriek'd at thy birth, an evil sign; The night-crow cried, aboding luckless time; Dogs howl'd, and hideous tempests shook down trees; The raven rook'd' her on the chimney's top, Glo. I'll hear no more;-Die, prophet, in thy For this, amongst the rest, was I ordain'd. K. Hen. Ay, and for much more slaughter after this. O God! forgive my sins, and pardon thee! [Dies. Glo. What, will the aspiring blood of Lancaster Sink in the ground? I thought it would have mounted. See, how my sword weeps for the poor king's death! O, may such purple tears be always shed 'From those that wish the downfal of our house!'If any spark of life be yet remaining, Down, down to hell; and say-I sent thee thither. [Stabs him again. I, that have neither pity, love, nor fear.Indeed, 'tis true, that Henry told me of; For I have often heard my mother say, I came into the world with my legs forward: Had I not reason, think ye, to make haste, And seek their ruin that usurp'd our right? The midwife wonder'd; and the women cried, O, Jesus bless us, he is born with teeth! 'And so I was; which plainly signifiedThat I should snarl, and bite, and play the dog. 'Then, since the heavens have shap'd my body so, And then, to purge his fear, I'll be thy death. 'King Henry, and the prince his son, are gone; 'Clarence, thy turn is next, and then the rest; Counting myself but bad, till I be best.'I'll throw thy body in another room, And triumph, Henry, in thy day of doom. [Exit. SCENE VII.-The same. A room in the pal ace. King Edward is discovered silting on his throne; Queen Elizabeth with the infant prince, Clarence, Gloster, Hastings, and others, near him. K. Edw. Once more we sit in England's roya throne, Re-purchas'd with the blood of enemies. That in their chains fetter'd the kingly lion, Glo. I'll blast his harvest, if your head were laid, [Aside. K. Edw. Clarence, and Gloster, love my lovely And hither have they sent it for her ransom. And now what rests, but that we spend the time matter itself will defeat. Dissimilitude of style and heterogeneousness of sentiment, may sufficiently show that a work does not really belong to the reputed author. But in these plays no such marks of spuriousness are found. The diction, the versification, and the figures, are Shakspeare's. These plays, considered without reThe three parts of King Henry VI. are suspected, tives in verse, gard to characters and incidents, merely as narra by Mr. Theobald, of being suppositious, and are more accurately finished, than those of King John, are more happily conceived, and declared, by Dr. Warburton, to be certainly not Richard II. or the tragic scenes of King Henry Shakspeare's. Mr. Theobald's suspicion arises from IV. and V. If we take these plays from Shak some obsolete words; but the phraseology is like the rest of our author's style, and single words, of speare, to whom shall they be given? What au thor of that age had the same easiness of expres which however I do not observe more than two, can sion and fluency of numbers? conclude little. Of these three plays I think the second the best. Dr. Warburton gives no reason, but I suppose The truth is, that they have not sufficient variety him to judge upon deeper principles and more of action, for the incidents are too often of the same comprehensive views, and to draw his opinion from kind; yet many of the characters are well dis the general effect and spirit of the composition, criminated. King Henry, and his Queen, King which he thinks inferior to the other historical plays. Edward, the Duke of Gloucester, and the Eari of From mere inferiority nothing can be inferred; Warwick, are very strongly and distinctly painted in the productions of wit there will be inequality. Sometimes jugment will er, and sometimes the VOL. 5'. JOHNSON. And hate the idle pleasures of these days. Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous, SCENE 1-London. A street. Enter Gloster. | By drunken prophecies, libels, and dreams, Gloster. Now is the winter of our discontent I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's majesty, To set my brother Clarence, and the king, Dive, thoughts, down to my soul! here Clarence comes. Enter Clarence, guarded, and Brakenbury. Brother, good day: What means this armed guard That waits upon your grace? Clar. His majesty, Tendering my person's safety, hath appointed This conduct to convey me to the Tower. Glo. Upon what cause? Clar. Because my name is-George. Glo. Alack, my lord, that fault is none of yours; He should, for that, commit your godfathers:O, belike, his majesty hath some intent, That you shall be new christen'd in the Tower. But what's the matter, Clarence? may I know? Clar. Yea, Richard, when I know; for I protest, As yet I do not: But, as I can learn, He hearkens after prophecies, and dreams; And from the cross-row plucks the letter G, And says-a wizard told him, that by G His issue disinherited should be; And, for my name of George begins with G, It follows in his thought, that I am he: These, as I learn, and such like toys as these, Mave mov'd his highness to commit me now. (3) Preparations for mischief. (4) Fancies. |