I am thy grandame, Richard; call me so.

Bast. Madam, by chance, but not by truth: What though?

Something about, a little from the right,*

In at the window, or else o'er the hatch: Who dares not stir by day, must walk by night; And have is have, however men do catch: Near or far off, well won is still well shot; And I am I, howe'er I was begot.

K. John. Go, Faulconbridge; now hast thou thy desire,

A landless knight makes thee a landed 'squire.Come, madam, and come, Richard; we must

speed

For France, for France; for it is more than need. Bast. Brother, adieu; Good fortune come to

thee!

For thou wast got i'the way of honesty.

[Exeunt all but the Bastard.

A foot of honour better than I was;

But many a many foot of land the worse.
Well, now can I make any Joan a lady :-
Good den,' sir Richard,-God-a-mercy, fellow ;-
And if his name be George, I'll call him Peter:
For new-made honour doth forget men's names;
"Tis too respective, and too sociable,

* Something about, a little from the right, &c.] This speech, composed of allusive and proverbial sentences, is obscure. I am, says the sprightly knight, your grandson, a little irregularly, but every man cannot get what he wishes the legal way. He that dares not go about his designs by day, must make his motions in the night; he, to whom the door is shut, must climb the window, or leap the hatch. This, however, shall not depress me; for the world never enquires how any man got what he is known to possess, but allows that to have is to have, however it was caught, and that he who wins, shot well, whatever was his skill, whether the arrow fell near the mark, or far off it. JOHNSON.

Good den,] i. e. a good evening.

For your conversion. Now your traveller,-
He and his tooth-pick at my worship's mess;
And when my knightly stomach is suffic'd,
Why then I suck my teeth, and catechise
My picked man of countries:-My dear sir,
(Thus, leaning on my elbow, I begin,)
I shall beseech you-That is question now;
And then comes answer like an ABC-book:R—
O sir, says answer, at your best command;
At your employment; at your service, sir:-
No, sir, says question, I, sweet sir, at yours:
And so, ere answer knows what question would,
(Saving in dialogue of compliment;

And talking of the Alps and Apennines,
The Pyrenean, and the river Po,)
It draws toward supper in conclusion so.
But this is worshipful society,

And fits the mounting spirit, like myself:
For he is but a bastard to the time,9
That doth not smack of observation;
(And so am I, whether I smack, or no;)
And not alone in habit and device,
Exterior form, outward accoutrement;
But from the inward motion to deliver
Sweet, sweet, sweet poison for the age's tooth:
Which, though I will not practise to deceive,
Yet, to avoid deceit, I mean to learn;
For it shall strew the footsteps of my rising.-
But who comes in such haste, in riding robes?

6 'Tis too respective, and too sociable,

For your conversion.] Respective, is respectful, formal. Conversion seems to mean, his late change of condition from a private gentleman to a knight. STEEVENS.

7 My picked man of countries:] i. e. my travelled fop.

8 like an ABC-book:] An ABC-book, or, as they spoke and wrote it, an absey-book, is a catechism.

"For he is but a bastard to the time, &c.] He is accounted but a mean man in the present age.

What woman-post is this? hath she no husband, That will take pains to blow a horn before her?

Enter Lady FAULCONBRIDGE, and JAMES GURNEY. O me! it is my mother :-How now, good lady? What brings you here to court so hastily?

Lady F. Where is that slave, thy brother? where is he?

That holds in chase mine honour up and down?
Bast. My brother Robert ? old sir Robert's son ?
Colbrand' the giant, that same mighty man?
Is it sir Robert's son, that you seek so?

Lady F. Sir Robert's son! Ay, thou unreverend boy,

Sir Robert's son: Why scorn'st thou at sir Robert ? He is sir Robert's son; and so art thou.

Bast. James Gurney, wilt thou give us leave a while?

Gur. Good leave,

Bast.

There's toys abroad;

good Philip.

Philip?-sparrow !3-James, anon I'll tell thee more.

[Exit GURNEY.
Madam, I was not old sir Robert's son;
Sir Robert might have eat his part in me
Upon Good-friday, and ne'er broke his fast:
Sir Robert could do well; Marry (to confess!)
Could he get me? Sir Robert could not do it;
We know his handy-work:-Therefore, good mo-
ther,

To whom am I beholden for these limbs?
Sir Robert never holp to make this leg.

'Colbrand-] Colbrand was a Danish giant, whom Guy of Warwick discomfited in the presence of King Athelstan.

4

2 Good leave, &c.] Good leave means a ready assent.

$ Philip?-sparrow!] A sparrow is called Philip.

There's toys abroad; &c.] i, e. rumours, idle reports.

Lady F. Hast thou conspired with thy brother

too,

That for thine own gain should'st defend mine honour?

What means this scorn, thou most untoward knave? Bast. Knight, knight, good mother,-Basilisco

like:5

What! I am dubb'd; I have it on my shoulder.
But, mother, I am not sir Robert's son;
I have disclaim'd sir Robert, and my land;
Legitimation, name, and all is gone:

Then, good my mother, let me know my father;
Some proper man, I hope; Who was it, mother?
Lady F. Hast thou denied thyself a Faulcon-
bridge?

Bast. As faithfully as I deny the devil.

Lady F. King Richard Coeur-de-lion was thy father;

By long and vehement suit I was seduc'd
To make room for him in my husband's bed:-
Heaven lay not my transgression to my charge!-
Thou art the issue of my dear offence,

Which was so strongly urg'd, past my defence.
Bast. Now, by this light, were I to get again,
Madam, I would not wish a better father.
Some sins do bear their privilege on earth,
And so doth yours; your fault was not your folly:
Needs must you lay your heart at his dispose,―
Subjected tribute to commanding love,-
Against whose fury and unmatched force
The awless lion could not wage the fight,
Nor keep his princely heart from Richard's hand.

"Knight, knight, good mother,-Basilisco-like:] Faulconbridge's words here carry a concealed piece of satire on a stupid drama of that age, printed in 1599, and called Soliman and Perseda. In this piece there is a character of a bragging cowardly knight, called Basilisco.

He, that perforce robs lions of their hearts,
May easily win a woman's. Ay, my mother,
With all my heart I thank thee for my father!
Who lives and dares but say, thou did'st not well
When I was got, I'll send his soul to hell.
Come, lady, I will show thee to my kin;

And they shall say, when Richard me begot, If thou hadst said him nay, it had been sin: Who says it was, he lies; I was, he lies; I say, 'twas not. [Exeunt.

ACT II.

SCENE I. France. Before the Walls of Angiers.

Enter, on one side, the Archduke of Austria, and Forces; on the other, PHILIP, King of France, and Forces; LEWIS, CONSTANCE, ARTHUR, and Attendants.

Lew. Before Angiers well met, brave Austria.Arthur, that great fore-runner of thy blood, Richard, that robb'd the lion of his heart, And fought the holy wars in Palestine, By this brave duke came early to his grave: And, for amends to his posterity, At our importance hither is he come, To spread his colours, boy, in thy behalf; And to rebuke the usurpation

Of thy unnatural uncle, English John:

Embrace him, love him, give him welcome hither. Arth. God shall forgive you Coeur-de-lion's death,

• At our importance] At our importunity.