Sal. Truft not those cunning waters of his eyes,
For villainy is not without fuch rheum;
And he, long traded in it, makes it feem-
Like rivers of remorfe and innocence.
Away with me all you, whofe fouls abhor
'Th' uncleanly favour of a flaughter-house,
For I am ftifled with the fmell of fin.

Bigot. Away tow'rd Bury, to the Dauphin there
Pemb. There, tell the King, he may enquire us out.
[Exeunt Lords...

SCENE VII.

Faulc. Here's a good world. Knew you of this fair work?

Beyond the infinite and boundless reach

Of mercy, if thou did'ft this deed of death,

Art thou damn'd, Hubert.

Hub. Do but hear me, Sir.

Faule. Ha! I'll tell thee what,

Thou'rt damn'd fo black-nay, nothing is fo black ́; Thou art more deep damn'd than prince Lucifer.

There is not yet fo ugly a fiend of hell

As thou shalt be, if thou didst kill this child.
Hub. Upon my foul-

Faulc. If thou didft but confent

To this moft cruel act, do but defpair,

And if thou want'ft a cord, the fmalleft thread,
That ever spider twisted from her womb,

Will ftrangle thee; a rush will be a beam

To hang thee on or wouldst thou drown thyself,
Put but a little water in a spoon,

And it fhall be as all the ocean,
Enough to ftifle fuch a villain up.
I do fufpect thee very grievously.

Hub. If I in act, confent, or fin of thought,
Be guilty of the ftealing that fweet breath,
Which was embounded in this beauteous clay,.
Let hell want pains enough to torture me!
I left him well.

Faulc

Faule. Go, bear him in thine arms.
I am amaz'd, methinks, and lofe my way
Among the thorns and dangers of this world.
How eafy doft thou take all England up!
From forth this morfel of dead Royalty,
The life, the right, and truth of all this Realma
Is fled to heav'n; and England now is left
To tug and fcramble, and to part by th' teeth
The un-owed intereft of proud-fwelling State.
Now for the bare-pickt bone of Majefty,
Doth dogged war bristle his angry creft;
And fnarleth in the gentle eyes of peace.

Now Pow'rs from home and discontents at home
Meet in one line: and vaft confufion waits
(As doth a Raven on a fick, fall'n beast)
The imminent Decay of wrefted Pomp (3).
Now happy be, whose cloak and cincture can
Hold out this tempeft. Bear away that child,
And follow me with fpeed; I'll to the King;
A thousand bufineffes are brief at hand,

And heav'n itself doth frown upon the Land. [Exeunt.

ACT V. SCENE I.

The Court of ENGLAN D.

Enter King John, Pandulpho, and Attendants.

K. JOHN.

T

HUS I have yielded up into

your

hand

The circle of my Glory. [Giving the Crown.

Pand. Take again

From this my hand, as holding of the Pope,

(3) The imminent decay of wrefted pomp.] Wrested pomp is greatnefs obtained by violence.

Your

Your fovereign Greatnefs and Authority.

K. John. Now keep your holy word; go meet the
French,

And from his Holiness ufe all your power
To stop their Marches, 'fore we are inflam'd..
Our difcontented Counties do revolt;
Our people quarrel with obedience;
Swearing allegiance, and the love of soul,
To ftranger blood, to foreign Royalty;
This inundation of miftemper'd humour.
Refts by you only to be qualify'd.

Then paufe not; for the prefent time's fo fick,.
That prefent medicine muft be miniftred,

Or Overthrow incurable enfues.

Pand. It was my breath that blew this tempeft up, Upon your ftubborn ufage of the Pope :

But fince you are a gentle convertite,

My tongue fhall huth again this ftorm of war;
And make fair weather in your bluft'ring Land.
On this Afcenfion-Day, remember well,
Upon your oath of fervice to the Pope,
Go I to make the French lay down their arms.

[Exit:

K. John. Is this Afcenfion-Day? did not the Prophet

Say, that before Afcenfion-Day? at noon

My Crown I fhould give off? even so I have :
I did fuppofe, it should be on conftraint :

But heav'n be thank'd, it is but voluntary.

Enter Faulconbridge.

Faule. All Kent hath yielded, nothing there holds out But Dover Cafle: London hath receiv'd,

Like a kind hoft, the Dauphin and his Powers.
Your Nobles will not hear you, but are gone

To offer fervice to your enemy;

And wild amazement hurries up and down
The little number of your doubtful friends.
K. John. Would not my Lords return to me again,
After they heard, young Arthur was alive??

Faule.

Fault. They found him dead, and caft into the ftreets, An empty casket, where the jewel, life,

By fome damn'd hand was robb'd and ta'en away.

K. Jbn. That villain Hubert told me, he did live.
Faule. So on my foul he did, for aught he knew:
But wherefore do you droop? why look you fad ?
Be great in act, as you have been in thought:
Let not the world fee fear and fad diftruf
Govern the motion of a kingly eye:

Be ftirring as the time; be fire with fire;
Threaten the threatner, and out-face the brow
Of bragging horror: fo fhall inferior eyes,
That borrow their behaviours from the Great,
Grow great by your example, and put on
The dauntless spirit of refolution.
Away, and glifter like the God of war,
When he intendeth to become the field ;
Shew boldness and afpiring confidence.
What, fhall they seek the Lion in his den,
And fright him there? and make him tremble there?
Oh, let it not be faid! Forage, and run (4)
To meet displeasure farther from the doors;
And grapple with him, ere he come fo nigh.

K. John. The legate of the Pope hath been with me,
And I have made a happy peace with him;
And he hath promis'd to difmifs the Powers
Led by the Dauphin.

Faulc. Oh inglorious league !

Shall we, upon the footing of our Land,
Send fair play-orders, and make compromife,
Infinuation, parley, and bafe truce,

To arms invafive? fhall a beardlefs boy,
A cocker'd, filken, Wanton brave our fields,
And flesh his fpirit in a warlike foil,

Mocking the air with Colours idly fpread (5),

(4)

Forage, and run-] To forage is here used in its original fenfe, for to range abroad.

(5) Mocking the air with colours] He has the fame image Macbeth.

Where the Norwegian colours flout the sky,

And fan our people cold.

And

And find no check? let us, my Liege, to arms:
Perchance, the Cardinal can't make your peace;
Or if he do, let it at least be faid,

They faw, we had a purpose of defence.

K. Jobn. Have thou the ord'ring of this prefent time. Faulc. Away then, with good courage; yet, I know (6) Our Party may well meet a prouder foe.

SCENE II.

[Exeunt.

Changes to the Dauphin's Camp, at St. Edmondsbury

(7).

Enter, in arms, Lewis, Salisbury, Melun, Pembroke,
Bigot, and Soldiers.

Leavis. My Lord Melan, let this be copied out,
And keep it fafe for our remembrance :
Return the precedent to thefe Lords again,
That having our fair order written down,
Both they and we, perufing o'er these notes,
May know wherefore we took the Sacrament;
And keep our faiths firm and inviolable.

Sal. Upon our fides it never fhall be broken..
And, noble Dauphin, albeit we fwear

(6) Away then, with good courage; yet, I know,"

Our party may well meet a prouder foe.] Let us... then away with courage; yet I fo well know the faintnefs of our party, that I think it may easily bappen that they shall encounter enemies who bave more Spirit than themselves.

(7) at St. Edmondsbury.] I have ventnr'd to fix the Place of the Scene here, which is fpecified by none of the Editors, on the following Authorities. In the preceding Act, where Salisbury, has fixed to go over to the Dauphin, he fays;

Lords, I will meet him at St. Edmondíbury. And Count Melun, in this laft Act, fays; and many more with me,

Upon the Altar at St. Edmondsbury

Even on that Altar, where we fware to your

Dear Amity, and emerlafting Love. And it appears likewife from the Troublefme Reign of King John, in two parts (the first rough Model of this pay) that the Interchange of Vows betwixt the Dauphin and the English Barons was at St. Edmondsbury.

THEOBALD.

A