For I must use thee.-O my gentle cousin,

[Exit HUBERT, with PETER. Hear'st thou the news abroad, who are arriv'd? Phil. The French, my lord; men's mouths are full

of it:

Besides, I met lord Bigot, and lord Salisbury,
(With eyes as red as new-enkindled fire,)
And others more, going to seek the grave
Of Arthur, who, they say, is kill'd to-night
On your suggestion.

K. John.

Gentle kinsman, go,

And thrust thyself into their companies:
I have a way to win their loves again;
Bring them before me.

Phil.

I will seek them out.

K. John. Nay, but make haste; the better foot O, let me have no subject enemies,

[before. When adverse foreigners affright my towns With dreadful pomp of stout invasion!

Be Mercury, set feathers to thy heels;

And fly, like thought, from them to me again.
Phil. The spirit of the time shall teach me speed.

[Exit.
K. John. Spoke like a spriteful noble gentleman.—
Go after him; for he, perhaps, shall need
Some messenger betwixt me and the
And be thou he.

Mess.

peers;

With all my heart, my liege. [Exit.

K. John. My mother dead!

Re-enter HUBERT.

Hub. My, lord, they say, five moons were seen Four fixed; and the fifth did whirl about [to-night : The other four, in wond'rous motion.

K. John. Five moons?

Hub.

Old men, and beldams, in

Do prophecy upon it dangerously:

[the streets Young Arthur's death is common in their mouths: And when they talk of him, they shake their heads,

And whisper one another in the ear;

And he, that speaks, doth gripe the hearer's wrist;
Whilst he, that hears, makes fearful action,

With wrinkled brows, with nods, with rolling eyes.
I saw a smith stand with his hammer, thus,
The whilst his iron did on the anvil cool,
With open mouth swallowing a tailor's news;
Who, with his shears and measure in his hand,
Standing on slippers, (which his nimble haste
Had falsely thrust upon contráry feet,)
Told of a many thousand warlike French,
That were embatteled and rank'd in Kent:
Another lean unwash'd artificer

Cuts off his tale, and talks of Arthur's death.

K. John. Why seek'st thou to possess me with these Why urgest thou so oft young Arthur's death? [fears ? Thy hand hath murder'd him: I had mighty cause To wish him dead, but thou hadst none to kill him. Hub. Had none, my lord! why, did

voke me?

you not

pro

K. John. It is the curse of kings, to be attended
By slaves, that take their humours for a warrant
To break within the bloody house of life:
And, on the winking of authority,

To understand a law; to know the meaning
Of dangerous majesty, when, perchance, it frowns
More upon humour than advis'd respect.'

Hub. Here is your hand and seal for what I did. K. John. O, when the last account 'twixt heaven and earth

Is to be made, then shall this hand and seal
Witness against us to damnation!

How oft the sight of means to do ill deeds,

Makes deeds ill done! Hadest not thou been by,

This plainly hints at Davidson's case, in the affair of Mary Queen of Scots.-WARBURTON. It is extremely probable that our author meant to pay his court to Elizabeth by this covert apology for her conduct to Mary.-MALONE.

A fellow by the hand of nature mark'd,
Quoted, and sign'd, to do a deed of shame,
This murder had not come into my mind:
But, taking note of thy abhorr'd aspect,
Finding thee fit for bloody villainy,
Apt, liable to be employ'd in danger,
I faintly broke with thee of Arthur's death;
And thou, to be endeared to a king,
Made it no conscience to destroy a prince.
Hub. My lord,-

K. John. Hadst thou but shook thy head,
When I spake darkly what I purposed;
Or turn'd an eye of doubt upon my face,
As bid me tell my tale in express words;

or made [a pause,

Deep shame had struck me dumb, made me break off,
And those thy fears might have wrought fears in me:
But thou didst understand me by my signs,
And didst in signs again parley with sin;
Yea, without stop, didst let thy heart consent,
And, consequently, thy rude hand to act

The deed, which both our tongues held vile to name.—
Out of my sight, and never see me more!
My nobles leave me; and my state is brav'd,
Even at my gates, with ranks of foreign powers:
Nay, in the body of this fleshly land,

This kingdom, this confine of blood and breath,
Hostility and civil tumult reigns

Between my conscience, and my cousin's death.
Hub. Arm you against your other enemies,
I'll make a peace between your
soul and you.
Young Arthur is alive: This hand of mine
Is yet a maiden and an innocent hand,
Not painted with the crimson spots of blood.
Within this bosom never enter'd yet

The dreadful motion of a murd'rous thought,
And you have slander'd nature in my form;
Which, howsoever rude exteriorly,

Is yet the cover of a fairer mind

Than to be butcher of an innocent child.

[peers,

K. John. Doth Arthur live? O, haste thee to the Throw this report on their incensed rage, And make them tame to their obedience! Forgive the comment that my passion made Upon thy feature; for my rage was blind, And foul imaginary eyes of blood Presented thee more hideous than thou art. O, answer not; but to my closet bring The angry lords, with all expedient haste: I conjure thee but slowly; run more fast.

[Exeunt.

SCENE III.-The same. Before the castle.

Enter ARTHUR, on the walls.

Arth. The wall is high; and yet will I leap down:-
Good ground, be pitiful, and hurt me not!-
There's few, or none, do know me; if they did,
This ship-boy's semblance hath disguis'd me quite.
I am afraid; and yet I'll venture it.

If I get down, and do not break my limbs,
I'll find a thousand shifts to get away:

As good to die, and go, as die, and stay. [Leaps down.
O me! my uncle's spirit is in these stones:-
Heaven take my soul, and England keep my bones?

[Dies.

Enter PEMBROKE, Salisbury, and BIGOT. Sal. Lords, I will meet him at saint Edmund'sIt is our safety, and we must embrace [Bury: This gentle offer of the perilous time.

Pem. Who brought that letter from the cardinal? Sal. The count Melun, a noble lord of France; Whose private' with me, of the Dauphin's love, Is much more general than these lines import. Big. To-morrow morning let us meet him then.

1 His private account, or letter to me.

Sal. Or, rather then set forward for 'twill be Two long days' journey, lords, or' e'er we meet.

Enter PHILIP.

Phil. Once more to-day well met, distemper'd lords! The king, by me, requests your presence straight. Sal. The king hath dispossess'd himself of us; We will not line his thin bestained cloak With our pure honours, nor attend the foot That leaves the print of blood where-e'er it walks : Return, and tell him so; we know the worst.

Phil. Whate'er you think, good words, I think, were best.

Sal. Our griefs, and not our manners, reason now. Phil. But there is little reason in your grief; Therefore, 'twere reason, you had manners now. Pem. Sir, sir, impatience hath his privilege. Phil. 'Tis true; to hurt his master, no man else. Sal. This is the prison: What is he lies here? [Seeing ARTHUR.

Pem. O, death, made proud with pure and princely The earth had not a hole to hide this deed. [beauty! Sal. Murder, as hating what himself hath done, Doth lay it open, to urge on revenge.

Big. Or, when he doom'd this beauty to a grave,
Found it too precious-princely for a grave. [beheld,
Sal. Sir Richard, what think you? Have you
Or have you read, or heard? or could you think?
Or do you almost think, although you see,

That you do see? could thought, without this object,
Form such another? This is the very top,
The height, the crest, or crest unto the crest,
Of murder's arms: this is the bloodiest shame,
The wildest savag'ry, the vilest stroke,
That ever wall-ey'd wrath, or staring rage,
Presented to the tears of soft remorse.

1

or, is here the same as ere, i. e. before. The addition of ever, or e'er, is merely augmentative.