So help me God, as I have watch'd the night,-
Ay, night by night,-in studying good for England!
That doit that e'er I wrested from the king,
Or any groat I hoarded to my use,

Be brought against me at my trial day!
No! many a pound of mine own proper store,
Because I would not tax the needy commons,
Have I disbursed to the garrisons,

And never ask'd for restitution.

Car. It serves you well, my lord, to say so much. Glo. I say no more than truth, so help me God ! York. In your protectorship, you did devise Strange tortures for offenders, never heard of, That England was defam'd by tyranny.

Glo.Why,'tis well known, that whiles I was protector,

Pity was all the fault that was in me ;

For I should melt at an offender's tears,

And lowly words were ransome for their fault.

Unless it were a bloody murderer,

Or foul felonious thief that fleec'd poor passengers,
I never gave them condign punishment:

Murder, indeed, that bloody sin, I tortur'd

Above the felon, or what trespass else.

Suf. My lord, these faults are easy,' quickly answer'd: But mightier crimes are laid unto your charge, Whereof you cannot easily purge yourself.

I do arrest you in his highness' name;
And here commit you to my lord cardinal
To keep, until your further time of trial.

K.Hen. My lord of Gloster, 'tis my special hope,
That you will clear yourself from all suspects;
My conscience tells me, you are innocent.

Glo. Ah, gracious lord, these days are dangerous ! Virtue is chok'd with foul ambition,

And charity chas'd hence by rancour's hand;
Foul subornation is predominant,

And equity exíl'd your highness' land.

I know, their complot is to have my life;

And, if my death might make this island happy,
And prove the period of their tyranny,

I would expend it with all willingness:
But mine is made the prologue to their play;
For thousands more, that yet suspect no peril,

[1] This word no doubt, means easily.

RITSON.

Will not conclude their plotted tragedy.

Beaufort's red sparkling eyes blab his heart's malice,
And Suffolk's cloudy brow his stormy hate;
Sharp Buckingham unburdens with his tongue
The envious load that lies upon his heart;
And dogged York, that reaches at the moon,
Whose overweening arm I have pluck'd back,
By false accuse 2 doth level at my life :-
And you, my sovereign lady, with the rest,
Causeless have laid disgraces on my head;
And, with your best endeavour, have stirr'd up
My liefest liege to be mine enemy :-
Ay, all of you have laid your heads together,
Myself had notice of your conventicles,

I shall not want false witness to condemn me,
Nor store of treasons to augment my guilt;
The ancient proverb will be well affected,-
A staff is quickly found to beat a dog.

Car. My liege, his railing is intolerable:
If those that care to keep your royal person
From treason's secret knife, and traitors' rage,
Be thus upbraided, chid, and rated at,
And the offender granted scope of speech,
'Twill make them cool in zeal unto your grace.

Suf. Hath he not twit our sovereign lady here,
With ignominious words, though clerkly couch'd,
As if she had suborned some to swear

False allegations to o'erthrow his state?

Q.Mar. But I can give the loser leave to chide. Glo. Far truer spoke, than meant: I lose, indeed Beshrew the winners, for they played me false ! And well such losers may have leave to speak.

Buck. He'll wrest the sense, and hold us here all day : -Lord cardinal, he is your prisoner.

Car. Sirs, take away the duke, and guard him sure. Glo. Ah, thus king Henry throws away his crutch, Before his legs be firm to bear his body :

Thus is the shepherd beaten from thy side,

And wolves are gnarling who shall gnaw thee first.
Ah, that my fear were false ! ah, that it were !

For, good king Henry, thy decay I fear.

[Exeunt Attendants, with GLOSTER.

K.Hen. My lords, what to your wisdoms seemeth best,

Do, or undo, as if ourself were here.

[2] i.e. accusation. STEEV.

[3] Liefest is dearest. JOHNS.

Q.Mar.What, will your highness leave the parliament ?. K.Hen. Ay, Margaret, my heart is drown'd with grief, Whose flood begins to flow within mine eyes;

My body round engirt with misery ;

For what's more miserable than discontent?-.
Ah, uncle Humphrey in thy face I see
The map of honour, truth, and loyalty;

And yet, good Humphrey, is the hour to come,
That e'er I prov'd thee false, or fear'd thy faith.
What low'ring star now envies thy estate,
That these great lords, and Margaret our queen,
Do seek subversion of thy harmless life?

Thou never didst them wrong, nor no man wrong:
And as the butcher takes away the calf,

And binds the wretch, and beats it when it strays,
Bearing it to the bloody slaughter-house;
Even so, remorseless, have they borne him hence.
And as the dam runs lowing up and down,
Looking the way her harmless young one went,
And can do nought but wail her darling's loss;
Even so myself bewails good Gloster's case,
With sad unhelpful tears; and with dimm'd eyes
Look after him, and cannot do him good;
So mighty are his vowed enemies.

His fortunes I will weep; and, 'twixt each groan,
Say-Who's a traitor, Gloster he is none.

[Exits Q.Mar. Free lords, 3 cold snow melts with the sun's

hot beams.

Henry my lord is cold in great affairs,
'Too full of foolish pity: and Gloster's show
Beguiles him, as the mournful crocodile
With sorrow snares relenting passengers;
Or as the snake, roll'd in a flowering bank,
With shining checker'd slough, doth sting a child,
That, for the beauty, thinks it excellent.
Believe me, lords, were none more wise than I,
(And yet, herein, I judge mine own wit good,)
This Gloster should be quickly rid the world,
To rid us from the fear we have of him.

Car. That he should die, is worthy policy;
But yet we want a colour for his death:
'Tis meet, he be condemn'd by course of law.
Suf. But, in my mind, that were no policy:

[3] By this she means (as may be seen by the sequel) you, who are not bound up to such precise regards of religion as the king; but are men of the world, and know how to live. WARB.

The king will labour still to save his life,
The commons haply rise to save his life ;
And yet we have but trivial argument,
More than mistrust, that shows him worthy death.
York. So that, by this, you would not have him dié.
Suf. Ah, York, no man alive so fain as I.

York. 'Tis York that hath more reason for his death. -But, my lord cardinal, and you, my lord of Suffolk, Say as you think, and speak it from your souls,Wer't not all one, an empty eagle were set

To guard the chicken from a hungry kite,

As place duke Humphrey for the king's protector?
Q.Mar. So the poor chicken should be sure of death.
Suf. Madam, 'tis true and wer't not madness then,
To make the fox surveyor of the fold?

Who being accus'd a crafty murderer,
His guilt should be but idly posted over,
Because his purpose is not executed.
No; let him die, in that he is a fox,
By nature prov'd an enemy to the flock,
Before his chaps be stain'd with crimson blood;
As Humphrey, prov'd by reasons, to my liege.4
And do not stand on quillets, how to slay him :
Be it by gins, by snares, by subtilty,
Sleeping, or waking, 'tis no matter how,
So he be dead; for that is good deceit

Which mates him first, that first intends deceit.5
Q.Mar. Thrice-noble Suffolk, 'tis resolutely spoke.
Suf. Not resolute, except so much were done;
For things are often spoke, and seldom meant :
But, that my heart accordeth with my tongue,-
Seeing the deed is meritorious,

And to preserve my sovereign from his foe,-
Say but the word, and I will be his priest.6

Car. But I would have him dead, my lord of Suffolk,

[4] The meaning of the speaker is not hard to be discovered, but his expression is very much perplexed. He means that the fox may be lawfully kil led, as being known to be by nature an enemy to sheep, even before he has actually killed them; so Humphrey may be properly destroyed, as being proved by arguments to be the king's enemy, before he has committed any actual crime.

JOHNS.

[5] Mates him, means-that first puts an end to his moving. To mate is a term in chess, used when the King is stopped from moving, and an end put to the game. PERCY.-Mates him, means confounds him; from amatir or mater Fr. Tomate is no term in chess. Check mate, the term alluded to, is a corruption of the Persian schah mat; the king is killed. RITSON.

[6] I will be the attendant on his last scene; I will be the last man whom he will see. JOHNS.

Ere you can take due orders for a priest:
Say, you consent, and censure well the deed,"
And I'll provide his executioner,

I tender so the safety of my liege.

Suf. Here is my hand, the deed is worthy doing.
Q.Mar. And so say I.

York. And I and now we three have spoke it,
It skills not greatly who impugus our doom.

Enter a Messenger.

Mess. Great lords, from Ireland am I come amaiņi, To signify-that rebels there are up,

And put the Englishmen unto the sword:

Send succours, lords, and stop the rage betime,
Before the wound do grow incurable;

For, being green, there is great hope of help.

Car. A breach, that craves a quick expedient stop: What counsel give you in this weighty cause?

York. That Somerset be sent as regent thither :
'Tis meet, that lucky ruler be employ'd;
Witness the fortune he hath had in France.
Som. If York, with all his far-fet policy,
Had been the regent there instead of me,
He never would have staid in France so long.
York. No, not to lose it all, as thou hast done:
I rather would have lost my life betimes,
Than bring a burden of dishonour home,
By staying there so long, till all were lost.
Show me one scar charácter'd on thy skin :
Men's flesh preserv'd so whole, do seldom win.

Q.Mar. Nay then, this spark will prove a raging fire,
If wind and fuel be brought to feed it with :-
No more, good York ;-sweet Somerset, be still ;-
Thy fortune, York, hadst thou been regent there,
Might happily have prov'd far worse than his.

York. What, worse than naught? nay, then a shame take all !

Som. And, in the number, thee, that wishest shame!
Car. My lord of York, try what your fortune is.
The uncivil Kernes of Ireland are in arms,

And temper clay with blood of Englishmen :
To Ireland will you lead a band of men,
Collected choicelý, from each county some,

[7] i.e. approve the deed, judge the deed good. 181

JOHNS

skills not-it is of no importance. JOHNS.