Glo. Take up the corse, sirs. Gen. Towards Chertsey, noble lord? Glo. No, to White-Friars; there attend my coming. [Exeunt the rest with the corse. Was ever woman in this humour woo'd? Was ever woman in this humour won? The bleeding witness of her hatred by ; With God, her conscience, and these bars against me, And I no friends to back my suit withal, But the plain devil, and dissembling looks, And yet to win her, all the world to nothing! Ha! Hath she forgot already that brave prince, Edward, her lord, whom I some three months since, Young, valiant, wise, and, no doubt, right royal,— That cropp'd the golden prime of this sweet prince, On me, whose all not equals Edward's moiety? On me, that halt, and am mis-shapen thus ? I do mistake my person all this while : pass. That is, when nature was in a prodigal or lavish mood. [Exit. WARBURTON. A denier is the twelfth part of a French sous, and appears to have been the sual request of a beggar. STEEVENS SCENE III. The same. A room in the palace. Enter Queen ELIZABETH, Lord RIVERS and Lord GREY. Riv. Have patience, madam; there's no doubt, his Will soon recover his accustom'd health. [majesty Grey. In that you brook it ill, it makes him worse: Therefore, for God's sake, entertain good comfort, And cheer his grace with quick and merry words. Q. Eliz. If he were dead, what would betide of me? Grey. No other harm, but loss of such a lord. Q. Eliz. The loss of such a lord includes all harms. Grey. The heavens have bless'd you with a goodly son, To be your comforter, when he is gone. Q. Eliz. Ah, he is young; and his minority Is put into the trust of Richard Gloster, Enter BUCKINgham and Stanley. Grey. Here come the lords of Buckingham and Stanley. To your good prayer will scarcely say-Amen. Stan. I do beseech you, either not believe Bear with her weakness, which, I think, proceeds Q. Eliz. Saw you the king to-day, my lord of Stanley? Q. Eliz. What likelihood of his amendment, lords? Buck. Madam, good hope; his grace speaks cheerfully Q. Eliz. God grant him health! Did you confer with him? Buck. Ay, madam : he desires to make atonement Between the duke of Gloster and your brothers, And between them and my lord chamberlain ; And sent to warn them to his royal presence Q. Eliz. 'Would all were well!-But that will never be Enter GLOSTER, HASTINGS, and DORSET Glo. They do me wrong, and I will not endure it :— Cannot a plain man live, and think no harm, Grey. To whom in all this presence speaks your grace? When have I injur'd thee? when done thee wrong But you must trouble him with lewd complaints. Q. Eliz. Brother of Gloster, you mistake the matter: The king, of his own royal disposition, And not provok'd by any suitor else; Glo. I cannot tell; The world is grown so bad, There's many a gentle person made a Jack. Q. Eliz Come, come, we know your meaning, brother Gloster; You envy my advancement, and my friends ; God grant, we may never have need of you! [2] Lewd, rude, ignorant; from the Anglo-Saxon Laewede, a Laick. STEEVENS [3] This proverbial expression at once demonstrates the origin of the term Jack so often used by Shakspeare. It means one of the very lowest class of people, among whom this name is of the most common and familiar kind. DOUCE. Glo. Meantime, God grants that we have need of you : Our brother is imprison'd by your means, Myself disgrac❜d, and the nobility Held in contempt; while great promotions Are daily given, to ennoble those That scarce, some two days since, were worth a noble. Q. Eliz. By Him, that rais'd me to this careful height, From that contented hap which I enjoy'd, I never did incense his majesty Against the duke of Clarence, but have been My lord, you do me shameful injury, Falsely to draw me in these vile suspects. Glo. You may deny that you were not the cause Of my lord Hastings' late imprisonment. Riv. She may, my lord; for Glo. She may, lord Rivers ?-why, who knows not so? She may do more, sir, than denying that: She may help you to many fair preferments; And then deny her aiding hand therein, And lay those honours on your high desert. What may she not ?-She may, ay,-marry, may she,— Riv. What, marry, may she? Glo. What, marry, may she? marry with a king, A bachelor, a handsome stripling too : I wis, your grandam had a worser match. Q. Eliz. My lord of Gloster, I have too long borne By heaven, I will acquaint his majesty, Q. Mar. And lessen'd be that small, God, I beseech thee! Thy honour, state, and seat, is due to me. Glo. What? threat you me with telling of the king? Tell him, and spare not look, what I have said I will avouch, in presence of the king: I dare adventure to be sent to th' Tower, Q. Mar. Out, devil! I remember them too well: Thou kill'dst my husband Henry in the Tower, And Edward, my poor son, at Tewksbury. Glo. Ere you were queen, ay, or your husband king, I was a pack-horse in his great affairs; A weeder-out of his proud adversaries, A liberal rewarder of his friends; To royalize his blood, I spilt mine own. Q. Mar. Ay, and much better blood than his, or thine. Gio. In all which time, you, and your husband Grey, Were factious for the house of Lancaster ; And, Rivers, so were you :-Was not your husband Q. Mar. A murd'rous villain, and so still thou art. Glo. To fight on Edward's party, for the crown; I am too childish-foolish for this world. Q. Mar. Hie thee to hell for shame, and leave this world, Thou cacodæmon! there thy kingdom is. Riv. My lord of Gloster, in those busy days, Q.Eliz. As little joy, my lord, as you suppose That I enjoy, being the queen thereof. Q. Mar. A little joy enjoys the queen thereof; For I am she, and altogether joyless. I can no longer hold me patient. [Advancing. Hear me, you wrangling pirates, that fall out in sharing that which you have pill'd from me : [5] This scene of Margaret's imprecations is fine and artful. She prepares the audience, like another Cassandra, for the following tragic revolutions. WARBURTON. |