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Car. If thou be'st death, I'll give thee England's Enough to purchase such another island,[treasure, So thou wilt let me live, and feel no pain.

K. Henry. Ah, what a sign it is of evil life,
When death's approach is seen so terrible!

War. Beaufort, it is thy sovereign speaks to thee.
Car. Bring me unto my trial when you will.
Dy'd he not in his bed? where should he die?
Can I make men live, whe'r they will or no?-
Oh! torture me no more, I will confess.-
Alive again? then shew me where he is:
I'll give a thousand pound to look upon him.—
He hath no eyes, the dust hath blinded them.-
Comb down his hair; look! look! it stands upright,
Like lime-twigs set to catch my winged soul!-
Give me some drink; and bid the apothecary
Bring the strong poison that I bought of him."
K.Henry. O thou eternal Mover of the heavens,

5

Look with a gentle eye upon this wretch!
Oh, beat away the busy meddling fiend,
That lays strong siege unto this wretch's soul,
And from his bosom purge this black despair!
War. See, how the pangs of death do make him
grin.

Sal. Disturb him not, let him pass peaceably.
K.Henry. Peace to his soul, if God's good plea-
sure be !-

10 Lord cardinal, if thou think'st on heaven's bliss, Hold up thy hand, make signal of thy hope.He dies, and makes no sign:-O God, forgive him! War. So bad a death argues a monstrous life. K. Henry. Forbear to judge, for we are sinners all.-

151

Close up his eyes, and draw the curtain close;
And let us all to meditation.
[Excunt.

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Alarm. Fight at Sea. Ordnance goes off. Enter
Captain, Whitmore, and other pirates, with 30
Suffolk, and other prisoners.

Cup. THE gaudy, blabbing', and remorse-
ful day

35

Whit. I lost mine eye in laying the prize aboard, And therefore, to revenge it, shalt thou die;

[To Suffolk.

And so should these, if I might have my will.
Cap. Be not so rash; take ransom, let him live.
Suf. Look on my George, I am a gentleman;
Rate me at what thou wilt, thou shalt be paid.-
Whit. And so am I; my name is--Walter
Whitmore

How now? why start'st thou? what, doth death
affright?
[death.
Suf. Thy name affrights me, in whose sound is
A cunning man did calculate my birth,
And told me that by Water 'I should die:
40 Yet let not this make thee be bloody-minded;
Thy name is-Gualtier, being rightly sounded.

Is crept into the bosom of the sea;
And now loud-howling wolves arouse the jades
That drag the tragic melancholy night;
Who with their drowsy, slow, and flagging wings
Clip dead men's graves, and from their misty jaws
Breathe foul contagious darkness in the air.
Therefore bring forth the soldiers of our prize;
For, whilst our pinnace anchors in the Downs,
Here shall they make their ransom on the sand,
Or with their blood stain this discolour'd shore.-
Master, this prisoner freely give I thee;---
And thou that art his mate, make boot of this;-45
The other, Walter Whitmore, is thy share.

[Pointing to Suffolk.
1 Gent. What is my ransom, master? let me
know.
[head.
Mast. A thousand crowns, or else lay down your 50
Mate. And so much shall you give, or off goes
[sand crowns,
Whit. What, think you much to pay two thou-
And bear the name and port of gentlemen?-
Cut both the villains' throats;-for die you shall; 55
Nor can those lives which we have lost in fight,
Be counterpois'd with such a petty sum.

yours.

[life.

1 Gent. I'll give it, sir; and therefore spare my 2 Gent. And so will I, and write home for it

straight.

Whit. Gualtier,or Walter, which it is, I care not:
Ne'er yet did base dishonour blur our name,
But with our sword we wip'd away the blot;
Therefore, when merchant-like I sell revenge,
Broke be my sword, my arms torn and defac'd,
And I proclaim'd a coward through the world!
Suf Stay, Whitmore; for thy prisoner is a prince,
The duke of Suffolk, William de la Pole.

Whit. The duke of Suffolk, muffled up in rags!
Suf. Ay, but these rags are no part of the duke;
Jove sometime went disguis'd, and why not I

Cap. But Jove was never slain, as thou shalt be.
Suf. Obscure and lowly swain, king Henry's
The honourable blood of Lancaster, [blood,
Must not be shed by such a jaded groom.
Hast thou not kiss'd thy hand, and held my stirrup?
And bare-head plodded by my foot-cloth mule,
And thought thee happy when I shook my head?
60 How often hast thou waited at my cup,

The epithet blabbing, applied to the day by a man about to commit murder, is exquisitely beautiful. Guilt is afraid of light, considers darkness as a natural shelter, and makes night the confidante of those actions which cannot be trusted to the tell-tale day. 2 Remorseful is pitiful. * See the fourth scene of the first act of this play.

Fed

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Ay, and allay this thy abortive' pride;
How in our voiding lobby hast thou stood,
And duly waited for my coming forth?
This hand of mine hath writ in thy behalf,
And therefore shall it charm thy riotous tongue.
Whit. Speak, captain, shall I stab the forlorn

swain?

Cap. First let my words stab him, as he hath me.
Suf. Base slave! thy words are blunt, and so

art thou.

[side Cap. Convey him hence, and on our long-boat's Strike off his head.

Suf. Thou dar'st not for thine own.

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go of message from the 5 I charge thee, waft me s Cap. Walter,

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Whit. Come, Suffolk,
Suf.Gelidus timor occu
Whit. Thou shalt hav
leave thee.

What, are ye daunted n 1 Gent. My gracious him fair. Suf.Suffolk's imperial 15 Us'd to command, unta Far be it, we should hon With humble suit: no, Stoop to the block, than Save to the God of heav 20 And sooner dance upon Than stand uncover'd to True nobility is exempt More can I bear, than y Cap. Hale him away, a 25 Come, soldiers, shew wh Suf. That this my death Great men oft die by vil A Roman sworder and b Murder'd sweet Tully; 30 Stabb'd Julius Cæsar; sa Pompey the great; and [Exit Walter Cap. And as for these w It is our pleasure one of 35 Therefore come you wit [Exit Captain, with a Re-enter Whitmore, Whit. There let his hea Until the queen his mistre

Cap. Poole? Sir Poole? Lord?
Ay, kennel, puddle, sink; whose filth and dirt
Troubles the silver spring where England drinks.
Now will I dam up this thy yawning mouth,
For swallowing the treasure of the realm:
Thy lips, that kiss'd the queen, shall sweep the
ground;
[death,
And thou, that smil'dst at good duke Humphrey's
Against the senseless winds shall grin in vain,
Who, in contempt, shall hiss at thee again:
And wedded be thou to the hags of hell,
For daring to affy a mighty lord
Unto the daughter of a worthless king,
Having neither subject, wealth, nor diadem.
By devilish policy art thou grown great,
And, like ambitious Sylla, over-gorg'd
With gobbets of thy mother's bleeding heart.
By thee, Anjou and Maine were sold to France:
The false revolting Normans, thorough thee,
Disdain to call us lord; and Picardy
Hath slain their governors, surpriz'd our forts,
And sent the ragged soldiers wounded home.
The princely Warwick, and the Nevils all,-
Whosedreadfulswordswereneverdrawn in vain,-40
As hating thee, are rising up in arms:
[crown,
And now the house of York-thrust from the
By shameful murder of a guiltless king,
And lofty proud encroaching tyranny,
Burns with revenging fire; whose hopeful colours 45
Advance our half-fac'd sun, striving to shine,
Under the which is writ-Incitis nubibus.
The commons here in Kent are up in arms:
And, to conclude, reproach, and beggary,
Is crept into the palace of our king,
And all by thee:-Away! convey him hence.

Suf. O that I were a god, to shoot forth thunder Upon these paltry, servile, abject drudges! [here, Small things make base men proud: this villain Being captain of a pinnace', threatens more Than Bargulus the strong Illyrian pirate. Drones suck not eagles' blood, but rob bee-hives.

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Meaning, pride assumed before its time.

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To affy is to betroth in ma

did not anciently signify, as at present, a man of war's boat, but a ship of sma Bargulus is to be met with in Tully's Offices; and the legend is the famous Bargulus Illyrius latro, de quo est apud Theopompum, magnas opes ha See note 2, page 505. i.e. Herennius a centurion, and Popilius Laenas Brutus was the son of Servilia, a Roman lady, who had been concubine to J poet seems to have confounded the story of Pompey with some other.

Bevis. O miserable age! Virtue is not regarded in handycrafts-men.

Hol. The nobility think scorn to go in leather

aprons.

Bevis. Nay more, the king's council are no good workmen.

Hol. True; And yet it is said,-Labour in thy vocation: which is as much to say as,-let the magistrates be labouring men; and therefore should we be magistrates.

Bevis. Thou hast hit it: for there's no better sign of a brave mind, than a hard hand.

Hol. I see them! I see them! There's Best's

son, the tanner of Wingham.

5

10

(seven half-penny loaves sold for a penny: the three-hoop'd pot shall have ten hoops; and I will make it felony to drink small beer: all the realm shall be in common, and in Cheapside shall my palfry go to grass. And, when I am king (as king I will be)

All. God save your majesty!

Cade. I thank you, good people:-There shall be no money; all shall eat and drink on my score; and I will apparel them all in one livery, that they may agree like brothers, and worship me their lord. Dick. The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.

Cade. Nay, that I mean to do. Is not this a

Becis. He shall have the skins of our enemies, 15 lamentable thing, that of the skin of an innocent

to make dog's leather of.

Hol. And Dick the butcher,—

Bevis. Then is sin struck down like an ox, and iniquity's throat cut like a calf.

lamb should be made parchment? that parchment, being scribbled o'er, should undo a man? Some say, the bee stings: but I say, 'tis the bee's wax; for I did but seal once to a thing, and I was 20never my own man since. How now? who's there?

Hol. And Smith the weaver:Bevis. Argo, their thread of life is spun. Hol. Come, come, let's fall in with them. Drum. Enter Cade, Dick the butcher, Smith the weater, and a sawyer, with infinite numbers. Cade. We John Cade, so term'd of our sup-25| posed father,

Dick. Or rather, of stealing a cade of herrings'.

[Aside. Cade. For our enemies shall fall before us, inspired with the spirit of putting down kings and 30 princes.-Command silence.

Dick. Silence!

Cade. My father was a Mortimer,—

Dick. He was an honest man, and a good bricklayer. [Aside. 35

Cade. My mother a Plantagenet,Dick. I knew her well, she was a midwife. [Aside. Cade. My wife descended of the Lacies,Dick. She was, indeed, a pedlar's daughter, and sold many laces. [Aside. 40 Smith. But, now of late, not able to travel with her furr'd pack', she washes bucks here at home. [Aside.

Cade. Therefore am I of an honourable house. Dick. Ay, by my faith: the field is honourable; 45 and there was he born, under a hedge; for his father had never a house, but the cage. [Aside. Cade. Valiant I am.

Smith. 'A must needs; for beggary is valiant.

[Aside. 50

Cade. I am able to endure much.
Dick. No question of that; for I have seen him
whipp'd three market-days together. [Aside.
Cade. I fear neither sword nor fire.

Smith. He need not fear the sword, for his coat 55
is of proof.
[Aside.

Dick. But, methinks, he should stand in fear of fire, being so often burnt i' the hand for stealing of sheep. [Aside

Cade. Be brave then; for your captain is brave, 60 and vows reformation. There shall be, in England,

Enter some, bringing in the Clerk of Chatham. Smith. The clerk of Chatham: he can write and read, and cast accompt.

Cade. O monstrous!

Smith. We took him setting of boys copies.
Cade. Here's a villain!

Smith. H'as a book in his pocket, with red letters in't.

Cade. Nay, then he is a conjurer.

Dick. Nay, he can make obligations, and write court-hand.

Cade. I am sorry for't: the man is a proper man, on mine honour; unless I find him guilty, he shall not die.-Come hither, sirrah, I must examine thee: What is thy name?

Clerk. Emanuel.

Dick. They use to write it on the top of letters;-Twill go hard with you.

Cade. Let me alone:-Dost thou use to write thy name? or hast thou a mark to thyself, like an honest plain-dealing man?

Clerk. Sir, I thank God, I have been so well brought up, that I can write my name.

All. He hath confess'd: away with him; he's
villain, and a traitor.

a
Cade. Away with him, I say: hang him with
his pen and inkhorn about his neck.

[Exit one with the Ckrk. Enter Michael.

Mich. Where's our general?

Cade. Here I am, thou particular fellow. Mich. Fly, fly, fly! Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother are hard by, with the king's forces. Cade. Stand, villain, stand, or I'll fell thee down: He shall be encounter'd with a man as good as himself: He is but a knight, is a'?

Mich. No.

Cade. To equal him, I will make myself a knight presently; Rise up Sir John Mortimer.

3

That is, a barrel of herrings. Perhaps the word keg, which is now used, is cade corrupted. 2 He alludes to his name Cade, from cado, Lat. to fall. A wallet or knapsack of skin with the hair outi. e. of letters missive, and such like public acts.

ward.

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Staf. Rebellious hinds, the filth and scum of Kent,
Mark'd for the gallows,-lay your weapons down,
Home to your cottages, forsake this groom :-
The king is merciful, if you revolt. [blood,
Y. Staf. But angry, wrathful, and inclin'd to
If you go forward: therefore yield, or die. [not';
Cade. As for these silken-coated slaves, I pass
It is to you, good people, that I speak,
O'er whom, in time to come, I hope to reign;
For I am rightful heir unto the crown.

Staf. Villain, thy father was a plaisterer;
And thou thyself, a shearman, Art thou not?
Cade. And Adam was a gardener.
Y. Staf. And what of that?

Cade. Marry, this:-Edmund Mortimer, earl
of March,
[not
Married the duke of Clarence' daughter; Did he
Staf. Ay, sir.

Cade. By her he had two children at one birth.
Y. Staf. That's false.

[true

Cade. Ay, there's the question; but, I say, 'tis
The elder of them, being put to nurse,
Was by a beggar-woman stol'n away;
And, ignorant of his birth and parentage,
Became a bricklayer, when he came to age :
His son am I; deny it, if you can.

[king.

10

Y. Staf. Well, seeing gentle words will not pre-
Assail them with the army of the king. [vail,
Staf. Herald away: and, throughout every town,
Proclaim them traitors that are up with Cade;
That those, which fly before the battle ends,
May, even in their wives' and children's sight,
Be hang'd up for example at their doors:
And you, that be the king's friends, follow me.
[Exeunt the two Staffords, with their train.
Cade. And you, that love the commons, fol-

low me.

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Another part of the Field. The parties fight, and
both the Staffords are slain.
Re-enter Cade, and the rest.
Cade. Where's Dick, the butcher of Ashford?
Dick. Here, sir.

Cade. They fell before thee like sheep and oxen, and thou behav'dst thyself as if thou hadst been in thine own slaughter-house: therefore thus I will 30 reward thee,-The Lent shall be as long again as it is; and thou shalt have a licence to kill for a hundred lacking one.

Dick. Nay, 'tis too true; therefore he shall be Smith. Sir, he made a chimney in my father's 35 house, and the bricks are alive at this day to testify it; therefore, deny it not.

Staf. And will you credit this base drudge's words, That speaks he knows not what?

All. Ay, marry,will we; therefore get you gone. 40 Y. Staf. Jack Cade, the duke of York hath taught you this.

Čade. He lies, for I invented it myself. [side. Go to, sirrah, Tell the king from me, that for his father's sake, Henry the fifth, in whose time boys 43 went to span-counter for French crowns,-I am content he shall reign; but I'll be protector over him.

Dick. And, furthermore, we'll have the lord Say's head, for selling the dukedom of Maine. 150

Cade. And good reason; for thereby is England maim'd, and fain to go with a staff, but that my puissance holds it up. Fellow kings, I tell you, that that lord Say hath gelded the common-wealth, and made it an eunuch: and more than that, he can 55 speak French, and therefore he is a traitor.

Staf. O gross and miserable ignorance! Cade. Nay, answer, if you can: The Frenchmen are our enemies: go to then, I ask but this: Can he, that speaks with the tongue of an enemy, be a 60 good counsellor, or no?

All. No, no; and therefore we'll have his head.

Dick. I desire no more.

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SCENE IV.
Black-Heath.

Enter King Henry with a supplication, and Queen Margaret with Suffolk's head; the Duke of Buckingham, and the Lord Say.

2. Mar. Oft have I heard-that grief softens
the mind,

And makes it fearful and degenerate;
Think therefore on revenge, and cease to weep.
But who can cease to weep, and look on this?
Here may his head lie on my throbbing breast:
But where's the body that I should embrace?

Buck. What answer makes your grace to the rebels' supplication?

K. Henry. I'll send some holy bishop to entreat:
For God forbid, so many simple souls
Should perish by the sword! And I myself,
Rather than bloody war should cut them short,
Will parley with Jack Cade their general.—

i. e. I pay them no regard. ? Here Cade must be supposed to take off Stafford's armour.

Act 4. Scene 7.]

SECOND PART OF KING HENRY VI.

But stay, I'll read it over once again.

[face 2. Mar. Ah, barbarous villains! hath this lovely Rul'd, like a wandering planet, over me; And could it not enforce them to relent, That were unworthy to behold the same? K. Henry, Lord Say, Jack Cade hath sworn to have thy head,

Say. Ay, but I hope, your highness shall have K. Henry. How now, madam? [his. Lamenting still, and mourning Suffolk's death? I fear, my love, if that I had been dead, Thou wouldest not have mourn'd so much for me. 2. Mar. No, my love, I should not mourn, but die for thee.

Enter a Messenger.

K. Henry. How now! what news? why com'st thou in such haste?

Mes. The rebels are in Southwark: Fly, my lord!
Jack Cade proclaims himself lord Mortimer,
Descended from the duke of Clarence' house;
And calls your grace usurper, openly,
And vows to crown himself in Westminster.
His army is a ragged multitude

Of hinds and peasants, rude and merciless:
Sir Humphrey Stafford and his brother's death
Hath given them heart and courage to proceed:
All scholars, lawyers, courtiers, gentlemen,
Theycall-false caterpillars, and intendtheirdeath..
K. Henry. O graceless inen! they know not
what they do.

Buck. My gracious lord, retire to Kenelworth,
Until a power be rais'd to put them down.
2. Mar. Ah! were the duke of Suffolk now alive,
These Kentish rebels should be soon appeas'd.

K. Henry. Lord Say, the traitor hateth thee, Therefore away with us to Kenelworth,

Say. So might your grace's person be in danger; The sight of me is odious in their eyes: And therefore in this city will I stay, And live alone as secret as I may. Enter another Messenger.

London-bridge;

2 Mes. Jack Cade hath gotten The citizens fly him, and forsake their houses: The rascal people, thirsting after prey, Join with the traitor; and they jointly swear, To spoil the city, and your royal court. [horse. Buck. Then linger not, my lord; away, take K. Henry, Come, Margaret; God, our hope, will succour us.

595

1 Cit. No, my lord, nor likely to be slain; for they have won the bridge, killing all those that withstand them: The lord mayor craves aid of your honour from the Tower, to defend the city from the rebels, [mand;

Scales, Such aid as I can spare, you shall comBut I am troubled here with them myself, The rebels have assay'd to win the Tower. But get you into Smithfield, gather head, 10And thither will I send you Matthew Gough': Fight for your king, your country, and your lives; And so farewell, for I must hence again, [Exeunt.

151

SCENE VI. Cannon-Street,

Enter Jack Cade and the rest. He strikes his staf on London-stone,

Cude. Now is Mortimer lord of this city. And here, sitting upon London-stone, I charge and 20 command, that, of the city's cost, the pissingconduit run nothing but claret wine the first year of our reign. And now, henceforward, it shall be treason for any that calls me other than Lord Mortimer,

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140

45

2. Mar. My hope is gone, now Suffolk is de-50 ceas'd. [rebels. K.Henry.Farewell, my lord; trust not to Kentish Buck. Trust no body, for fear you be betray'd. Say. The trust I have is in mine innocence, And therefore am I bold and resolute. [Exeunt.55

SCENE V. London.

Enter Lord Scales, and others, on the walls of the Tower. Then enter two or three Citizens below. Scales. How now? Is Jack Cade slain?

60

Enter a Soldier running,

Sol. Jack Cade! Jack Cade!

Cade, Knock him down there, [They kill him. Smith. If this fellow be wise, he'll never call you Jack Cade more; I think, he hath a very fair warning.

Dick. My lord, there's an army gather'd together in Sinithfield.

Cade. Come then, let's go fight with them: if you can, burn down the Tower too. Come, But, first, go and set London-bridge on fire; and, [Exeunt,

let's away.

SCENE VII. Smithfield.

Alarum. Enter Jack Cade with his company. They fight with the King's forces, and Matthew Gough is slain.

Cade. So, sirs:-Now go some and pull down the Savoy; others to the inns of court; down with them all.

Dick. I have a suit unto your lordship, Cade. Be it a lordship, thou shalt have it for that word.

Dick. Only, that the laws of England may come out of your mouth.

John. Mass, 'twill be sore law then; for he was thrust in the mouth with a spear, and 'tis not whole yet. [Aside, Smith. Nay, John, it will be stinking law; for his breath stinks with eating toasted cheese. [Aside, Cade. I have thought upon it, it shall be so. Away, burn all the records of the realm; my mouth shall be the parliament of England.

John. Then we are like to have biting statutes, lunless his teeth be pull'd out. [Aside.

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