More slavish did I ne'er than answering

A slave without a knock.

Clo.

Thou art a robber,

A law-breaker, a villain: yield thee, thief.

Gui. To who? to thee? What art thou?

Have not I

An arm as big as thine? a heart as big?
Thy words, I grant, are bigger, for I wear not
My dagger in my mouth. Say what thou art,
Why I should yield to thee?

Clo.

Thou villain base,

Know'st me not by my clothes?

Gui.

No, nor thy tailor, rascal,

Who is thy grandfather: he made those clothes,
Which, as it seems, make thee.

Clo. Cloten, thou villain.

Gui. Cloten, thou double villain, be thy name,

I cannot tremble at it: were it Toad, or Adder,

Spider,

"Twould move me sooner.

Clo.

To thy further fear,

Nay, to thy mere confusion, thou shalt know

I am son to the queen.

Gui.

I am sorry for 't; not seeming

So worthy as thy birth.

Clo.

Art not afeard?

86. injurious, insulting.

80

90

Gui. Those that I reverence those I fear, the

wise :

At fools I laugh, not fear them.

Clo.
Die the death:
When I have slain thee with my proper hand,
I'll follow those that even now fled hence,
And on the gates of Lud's-town set your
Yield, rustic mountaineer.

heads : [Exeunt, fighting. 10

Re-enter BELARIUS and ARVIRAGUS.

Bel. No companies abroad?

Arv. None in the world: you did mistake him, sure.

Bel. I cannot tell: long is it since I saw him, But time hath nothing blurr'd those lines of favour Which then he wore; the snatches in his voice, And burst of speaking, were as his : I am absolute 'Twas very Cloten.

Arv.

In this place we left them :

I wish my brother make good time with him,

You say he is so fell.

Bel.
Being scarce made up,
I mean, to man, he had not apprehension
Of roaring terrors; for defect of judgement
Is oft the cause of fear. But, see, thy brother.

Re-enter GUIDERIUS, with CLOTEN's head.
Gui. This Cloten was a fool, an empty purse;
There was no money in 't: not Hercules
Could have knock'd out his

IOI. companies, companions. 104. lines of favour, features. 108. make good time, come off well.

III. defect, misuse. Theobald's th' effect was generally adopted before the Camb. edd.,

VOL. IV

brains, for he had none:

209

and gives an excellent sense. But the meaning is that Cloten, lacking apprehension, is not subject to the intellectual man's foible of ingenious but unnecessary suspicion. He is not, in short, a Hamlet.

P

Yet I not doing this, the fool had borne
My head as I do his.

Bel.

What hast thou done?

Gui. I am perfect what: cut off one Cloten's head,

Son to the queen, after his own report;

Who call'd me traitor, mountaineer, and swore
With his own single hand he 'ld take us in,
Displace our heads where-thank the gods !-they
grow,

And set them on Lud's-town.

Bel.

We are all undone.

Gui. Why, worthy father, what have we to
lose,

But that he swore to take, our lives? The law
Protects not us: then why should we be tender
To let an arrogant piece of flesh threat us,
Play judge and executioner all himself,

For we do fear the law?

Discover you abroad?

Bel.

What company

No single soul

Can we set eye on; but in all safe reason
He must have some attendants.

humour

Though his

Was nothing but mutation, ay, and that

From one bad thing to worse; not frenzy, not
Absolute madness could so far have raved
To bring him here alone; although perhaps
It may be heard at court that such as we
Cave here, hunt here, are outlaws, and in time
May make some stronger head; the which he

hearing

As it is like him-might break out, and swear
He 'ld fetch us in ; yet is 't not probable

118. perfect, well assured.

132. humour; Ff (by misprint) honor.

120

130

140

To come alone, either he so undertaking,

Or they so suffering: then on good ground we

fear,

If we do fear this body hath a tail

More perilous than the head.

Arv.

Let ordinance

Come as the gods foresay it: howsoe'er,
My brother hath done well.

I had no mind

Bel.
To hunt this day: the boy Fidele's sickness

Did make my way long forth.

Gui.

With his own sword,

Which he did wave against my throat, I have

ta'en

His head from him: I'll throw 't into the creek
Behind our rock; and let it to the sea,
And tell the fishes he's the queen's son, Cloten:
That's all I reck.

Bel.

[Exit.

I fear 'twill be revenged: Would, Polydore, thou hadst not done 't! though

valour

Becomes thee well enough.

Arv.

Would I had done 't,
Polydore,

So the revenge alone pursued me!

I love thee brotherly, but envy much

Thou hast robb'd me of this deed: I would re

venges,

That possible strength might meet, would seek

us through

And put us to our answer.

Well, 'tis done :

Bel.
We'll hunt no more to-day, nor seek for danger

Where there's no profit. I prithee, to our rock ;
You and Fidele play the cooks: I'll stay
Till hasty Polydore return, and bring him
To dinner presently.

150

160

Arv.

Poor sick Fidele !

I'll willingly to him: to gain his colour
I'ld let a parish of such Clotens blood,
And praise myself for charity.

[Exit.

O thou goddess,

Bel.
Thou divine Nature, how thyself thou blazon'st
In these two princely boys! They are as gentle
As zephyrs blowing below the violet,

Not wagging his sweet head; and yet as rough,
Their royal blood enchafed, as the rudest wind,
That by the top doth take the mountain pine,
And make him stoop to the vale.

'Tis wonder

That an invisible instinct should frame them
To royalty unlearn'd, honour untaught,
Civility not seen from other, valour

That wildly grows in them, but yields a crop
As if it had been sow'd. Yet still it's strange
What Cloten's being here to us portends,
Or what his death will bring us.

170

180

Gui.

Re-enter GUIderius.

Where's my brother?

[Solemn music.

I have sent Cloten's clotpoll down the stream,
In embassy to his mother: his body's hostage

For his return.

Bel.

My ingenious instrument ! Hark, Polydore, it sounds!

But what occasion

Hath Cadwal now to give it motion? Hark!