So first the harmless sheep doth yield his fleece,
And next his throat unto the butcher's knife.
What scene of death hath Roscius now to act?

Glou. Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind; The thief doth fear each bush an officer.

K. Hen. The bird that hath been limed in a bush, With trembling wings misdoubteth every bush; And I, the hapless male to one sweet bird, Have now the fatal object in my eye,

10

15

Where my poor young was limed, was caught and kill'd.
Glou. Why, what a peevish fool was that of Crete,
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 boy
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?
Glou. 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.

Glou. Thy son I kill'd for his presumption.

8 sheep] flock Rowe. Corrected first
by Capell.

10 Roscius] Pope. Rossius Ff. Richard
Hanmer (Warburton).
now] om. F4.

15 male to] mate of So quoted by Mason.
mate to Kinnear conj.

20

20

25

30

17 limed] lim'd F,F, limb'd FF3
20 fool] fowl Dyce, ed. 2 (Seymour
conj.), from (Qq).

21 boy] son (Qq) Capell.

32 murdering] murd'ring Johnson. murthering Ff.

33 executioner.] Executioner? F4.

K. Hen. Hadst thou been kill'd when first thou didst

presume,

Thou hadst not lived to kill a son of mine.
And thus I prophesy, that many a thousand,
Which now mistrust no parcel of my fear,

35

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,
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;

40

45

Dogs howl'd, and hideous tempest shook down trees;
The raven rook'd her on the chimney's top,

And chattering pies in dismal discords sung.
Thy mother felt more than a mother's pain,
And yet brought forth less than a mother's hope,
To wit, an indigested and deformed lump,
Not like the fruit of such a goodly tree.

35 didst] did F.

39 And many] In many Vaughan conj.
41 Men......husbands,] Wives for their
husbands, fathers for their sons,
Anon. conj., from (Qq).
sons,...husbands,]sonnes,...husbands,
F1. sonnes,......husbands fate, F2.
sons,...husbands fate, F3F4.
husbands' fate, Warburton. sons,...
husband's fate, Johnson (a misprint).
sons',...husbands', Knight. sons,...
husbands mourning, Keightley. sons,
and for their husbands wives, Kinnear
conj.

sons,...

42 And orphans] F2F3F4 Orphans F1.
45 aboding...time] aboding...tune (Qq).
a boding...tune Theobald.
46 and] an Hanmer.

50

tempest] tempests (Qq) Capell. 47 rook'd her] croak'd hoarse Warburton. rock'd her Johnson conj. croak'd her Capell. ruck'd her Steevens conj. reek'd her Anon, conj. roop'd high Bubier conj. roosted or crooked Anon. conj. (Gent. Mag., 1789). 48 discords] discord (Qq) Grant White. 51 To wit, an...lump,] F1. To wit, an indigested deformed lump FF3. To wit, an indigested deform'd lump F To wit, an undigest deformed lump Capell, from (Qq). To wit, an indigest deformed lump Malone. To wit, An indigested and deformed lump Dyce, ed. 1 (in two lines). To wit,] om. Dyce, ed. 2 (Capell conj.).

Teeth hadst thou in thy head when thou wast born,
To signify thou camest to bite the world:"

And, if the rest be true which I have heard,
Thou camest-

55

Glou. I'll hear no more: die, prophet, in thy speech:

For this, amongst the rest, was I ordain'd.

[Stabs him.

K. Hen. Ay, and for much more slaughter after this. O, God forgive my sins, and pardon thee!

[Dies. 60 Glou. 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 alway shed

65

From those that wish the downfall 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 signified
That I should snarl and bite and play the dog.
Then, since the heavens have shaped my body so,
Let hell make crook'd my mind to answer it.

56 Thou camest-] Thou cam'st- Ff.

Thou cam'st into the world (Qq). Thou cam'st into the world with thy legs forward. Theobald. Thou cam'st into the world with thy feet foremost (or forward) Vaughan conj. 57 I'll......speech:] One line in Pope.

Two in Ff.

70

73

75

60 0, God] 0! God Hanmer. O God Ff. O God, Rowe.

79 After this line, Theobald inserts from (Qq) I had no father, I am like no father.

I have no brother, I am like no brother;
And this word 'love,' which greybeards call divine,
Be resident in men like one another,

And not in me: I am myself alone.

Clarence, beware; thou keep'st me from the light:
But I will sort a pitchy day for thee;
For I will buz abroad such prophecies
That Edward shall be fearful of his life,
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.

80

85

90

[Exit, with the body.

SCENE VII. London. The palace.

Flourish. Enter KING EDWARD, QUEEN ELIZABETH, CLARENCE, GLOUCESTER, HASTINGS, a Nurse with the young Prince, and Attendants.

K. Edw. Once more we sit in England's royal throne, Re-purchased with the blood of enemies.

What valiant foemen, like to autumn's corn,
Have we mow'd down in tops of all their pride!

84 keep'st] F3F4 keept'st FF

93 thy] the Pope.

[Exit, with the body.] Capell. Exit.
Ff.

SCENE VII.] Capell. SCENE VIII.
Pope.

London...] The Palace in London.
Theobald. The same. A Room of
State in the Palace. Capell.
Flourish.] F. om. F.F3F4.

a Nurse with the young Prince,]
Edd., from (Qq). Nurse, Ff.
King Edward is seen sitting in his
Throne; The Queen, with the in-
fant Prince in her Arms, Clarence,
and Others, by him: to them, Glos-
ter. Capell.

1 in] on Rowe.
4 tops] top Rowe

Three Dukes of Somerset, threefold renown'd
For hardy and undoubted champions;

Two Cliffords, as the father and the son;

And two Northumberlands; two braver men

5

11

Ne'er spurr'd their coursers at the trumpet's sound ;
With them, the two brave bears, Warwick and Montague,
That in their chains fetter'd the kingly lion,
And made the forest tremble when they roar'd.
Thus have we swept suspicion from our seat,
And made our footstool of security.
Come hither, Bess, and let me kiss my boy.
Young Ned, for thee, thine uncles and myself
Have in our armours watch'd the winter's night,
Went all afoot in summer's scalding heat,
That thou mightst repossess the crown in peace:
And of our labours thou shalt reap the gain.

15

20

Glou. [Aside] I'll blast his harvest, if your head were

laid;

For yet I am not look'd on in the world.

This shoulder was ordain'd so thick to heave;

And heave it shall some weight, or break my back:
Work thou the way,-and thou shalt execute.

25

K. Edw. Clarence and Gloucester, love my lovely

queen;

And kiss your princely nephew, brothers both.

5 renown'd] Rowe. renowmd (Q1Q2). renownd (Q3). Renowne, F1F2. Renown, F3F1.

6 undoubted] redoubted Capell conj. undaunted Anon. conj.

10 With them,] In a separate line, S. Walker conj.

14 [Enter Gloster behind. Collier (Collier MS.).

15 kiss] kiffe F2.

17 winter's] Winters F. Winter F2F3F4.

20 gain] grain Collier conj.
21-25 [Aside.] Rowe.
25 and] See note (XIII).

thou shalt] (Qq) Capell. that shalt
F1F2. that shall FF. this shall
Johnson conj.

execute.] execute... [Aside. Keightley.

[Pointing to his head. Hanmer. 27 kiss] F4 kis F1Fq. kisse F3. See note (XIII).