To whom they are directed: if you knew
How much they do import, you would make

haste.

Gent. My good lord,

I guess their tenor.

Arch. Like enough, you do.

To-morrow, good Sir Michael, is a day,
Wherein the fortune of ten thousand men
Must 'bide the touch: For, Sir, at Shrewsbury,
As I am truly given to understand,

The king, with mighty and quick-raised power,
Meets with lord Harry: and I fear, Sir Mi-
chael,-

What with the sickness of Northumberland,
(Whose power was in the first proportion,)
And what with Owen Glendower's absence,
thence,

(Who with them was a rated sinew too,

And comes not in, o'er-rul'd by prophecies,)—

I fear the power of Percy is too weak

To wage an instant trial with the king.

Of favour, from myself and all our house;
And yet I must remember you, my lord,
We were the first and dearest of your friends
For you, my staff of office did I break
In Richard's time; and posted day and night
To meet you on the way, and kiss your hand,

Gent. Why, good my lord, you need not fear; When yet you were in place and in account

there's Douglas,

And Mortimer.

Arch. No, Mortimer's not there.

Gent. But there is Mordake, Vernon, lord
Harry Percy,

And there's my lord of Worcester; and a bead
Of gallant warriors, noble gentlemen.

Arch. And so there is: but yet the king hath
drawn,

The special head of all the land together ;-
The prince of Wales, lord John of Lancaster,
The noble Westmoreland, and warlike Blunt;
And many more corrivals, and dear men
Of estimation and command in arms.

Gent. Doubt not, my lord, they shall be well
oppos'd.

Arch. I hope no less, yet needful 'tis to fear;
And, to prevent the worst, Sir Michael, speed:
For, if lord Percy thrive not, ere the king
Dismiss his power, he means to visit us,-
For he hath heard of our confederacy,-
And 'tis but wisdom to make strong against
him ;

Therefore, make haste: I must go write again
To other friends; and so farewell, Sir Michael.
[Exeunt severally.

ACT V.

Nothing so strong and fortunate as I.
It was myself, my brother, and his son,
That brought you home, and boldly did out-
dare,

The dangers of the time: You swore to us,—
And you did swear that oath at Doncaster,-
That you did nothing purpose 'gainst the state;
Nor claim no further than your new-fall'n
right,

The seat of Gaunt, dukedom of Lancaster:
To this we swore our aid. But, in short space,
It rain'd down fortune showering on your
head;

And such a flood of greatness fell on you,-
What with our help; what with the absent
king;

What with the injuries of a wanton time;
The seeming sufferances that you had borne;
And the contrarious winds, that held the king
So long in his unlucky Irish wars,
That all in England did repute him dead,-
And, from this swarm of fair advantages,
You took occasion to be quickly woo'd
To gripe the general sway into your hand:
Forgot your oath to us at Doncaster;
And, being fed by us, you us'd us so
As that ungentle gull, the cuckoo's bird,
Useth the sparrow: did oppress our nest;
Grew by our feeding to so great a bulk,

That even our love durst not come near your
sight

SCENE I.-The King's Camp near Shrews-We were enforc'd, for safety sake, to fly

For fear of swallowing; but with nimble wing

bury.

Enter King HENRY, Prince HENRY, Prince
JOHN of Lancaster, Sir WLLTER BLUNT,
and Sir JOHN FALSTAFF.

K. Hen. How bloodily the sun begins to peer
Above yon busky hill! the day looks pale
At his distemperature,

P. Hen. The southern wind
Doth play the trumpet to his purposes;
And, by his hollow whistling in the leaves,
Foretells a tempest, and a blustering day.
K. Hen. Then with the losers let it sym-
pathize;

For nothing can seem foul to those that win.-
Trumpet-Enter WORCESTER and VERNON.
How now, my lord of Worcester? 'tis not well,
That you and I should meet upon such termis
As now we meet: You have deceiv'd our trust;
And made us doff our easy robes of peace,
To crush our old limbs in ungentle steel:
This is not well, my lord, this is not well.
What say you to't? will you again unknit
This churlish knot of all-abhorred war?
And move in that obedient orb again,
Where you would give a fair and natural light;

• A strength on which they reckoned.
& Woody.

Out of your sight, and raise this present head:
Whereby we stand opposed by such means
AS you yourself have forg'd against yourself;
By unkind usage, dangerous countenance,
And violation of all faith and troth
Sworn to us in your younger enterprize.

K. Hen. These things, indeed, you have arti

culated,

Proclaim'd at market-crosses, read in churches;
To face the garment of rebellion

With some fine colour, that may please the

cye

Of fickle changelings, and poor discontents,
Which gape, and rub the elbow, at the news
Of hurlyburly innovation:

And never yet did insurrection want
Such water-colours, to impaint his cause;
Nor moody beggars, starving for a time
Of pell-mell havoc and confusion.

P. Hen. In both our armies, there is many
a soul

Shall pay full dearly for this encounter,
If once they join in trial. Tell your nephew,
The prince of Wales doth join with all the
world

In praise of Henry Percy; By my hopes,
This present enterprize set off his head,

Scene II.

FIRST PART OF KING HENRY IV.

I do not think a braver gentleman,
More active-valiant, or more valiant-young,
More daring, or more bold, is now alive,
To grace this latter age with noble deeds.
For my part, I may speak it to my shame,
I have a truant been to chivalry;

And so, I hear, he doth account me too :
Yet this before my father's majesty,

I am content, that he shall take the odds

Of his great name and estimation;

And will, to save the blood on either side,

Try fortune with him in a single fight.

407

Interpretation will misquote our looks;
And we shall feed like oxen at a stall,
The better cherish'd, still the nearer death.
My nephew's trespass may be well forgot,
It hath the excuse of youth, and heat of blood;
And an adopted name of privilege,-

A bair-brain'd Hotspur, govern'd by a spleen :
All his offences live upon my head,
And on his father's ;-we did train him on ;
And, his corruption being ta'en from us,
We, as the spring of all, shall pay for all.
Therefore, good cousin, let not Harry know,

K. Hen. And, prince of Wales, so dare we In any case, the offer of the king.
venture thee:

Albeit, considerations infinite

Do make against it :-No, good Worcester, no,
We love our people well; even those we love,
That are misled upon your cousin's part:
And, will they take the offer of our grace,
Both he, and they, and you, yea, every man
Shall be my friend again, and I'll be his :
So tell your cousin, and bring me word
What he will do:-But if he will not yield,
Rebuke and dread correction wait on us,
And they shall do their office. So, be gone;
We will not now be troubled with reply:
We offer fair, take it advisedly.

[Exeunt WORCESTER and VERNON.
P. Hen. It will not be accepted, on my life:
The Douglas and the Hotspur, both together
Are confident against the world in arms.

K. Hen. Hence, therefore, every leader to
his charge;

For, on their answer, will we set on them:
And God befriend us, as our cause is just !

[Exeunt KING, BLUNT, and Prince JOHN. Fal. Hal, if thou see me down in the battle, and bestride me so; 'tis a point of friend

ship.

P. Hen. Nothing but a Colossus can do thee that friendship. Say thy prayers, and farewell.

Fal. I would it were bed-time, Hal, and all well.

P. Hen. Why, thou owest God a death.

Ver. Deliver what you will, I'll say, 'tis so.
Here comes your cousin.

Enter HOTSPUR and DOUGLAS; and Officers
and Soldiers, behind.

Hot. My uncle is return'd :-Deliver up
My lord of Westmoreland.-Uncle, what news!
Wor. The king will bid you battle presently.
Doug. Defy him by the lord of Westmore-

land.

Hot. Lord Douglas, go you and tell him so.
Doug. Marry, and shall, and very willingly.

[Exit. Wor. There is no seeming mercy in the king.

Hot. Did you beg any? God forbid !
Wor. I told him gently of our grievances,
he mended
Of his oath-breaking; which

thus,

By now forswearing that he is forsworn :
He calls us rebels, traitors; and will scourge
With haughty arms this hateful name in us.

Re-enter DOUGLAS.

Doug. Arm, gentlemen; to arms! for I have thrown

that was engaged, did
A brave defiance in king Henry's teeth,
bear it :
And Westmoreland,
Which cannot choose but bring him quickly on.
Wor. The prince of Wales stepp'd forth before
the king,

And nephew, challeng'd you to single fight.
Hot. O 'would the quarrel lay upon our

heads;

[day, And that no man might draw short breath toBut I and Harry Monmouth! Tell me, tell me, How show'd his tasking? seem'd it in contempt ?

[Exit. Fal. 'Tis not due yet; I would be loath to What need I be so pay him before his day. forward with him that calls not on me? Well, 'tis no matter; Honour pricks me on. Yea, but how if bonour prick me off when I come on: how then? Can honour set to a leg? No. Or an Ver. No, by my soul; I never in my life arm? No. Or take away the grief of a wound? No. Honour hath no skill in surgery then? No. Did hear a challenge urg'd more modestly, What is honour? a word. What is in that word, Unless a brother should a brother dare honour? What is that honour? Air. A trim To gentle exercise and proof of arms. He that died o' He gave you all the duties of a man ; up your praises with reckoning 1-Who hath it? tongue; Wednesday. Doth he feel it? No. Doth he Trimm'd' hear it? No. Is it insensible then? Yea, to the dead. But will it not live with the living? Spoke your deservings like a chronicle; No. Why? Detraction will not suffer it :-there- Making you ever better than his praise, fore I'll none of it: Honour is a mere scutcheon, By still dispraising praise, valued with you : [Exit. And, which became him like a prince indeed, and so ends my catechism. He made a blushing cital of himself; WOR-And chid his truant youth with such a grace, As if he master'd there a double spirit Of teaching and of learning, instantly. There did he pause: but let me tell the world,

SCENE II.—The Rebel Camp.-Enter
CESTER and VERNON.

Wor. O no, my nephew must not
Sir Richard,

The liberal kind offer of the king.
Ver. "Twere best he did.

Wor. Then are we all undone.

It is not possible, it cannot be,

know,

The king should keep his word in loving us :
He will suspect us still, and find a time
To punish this offence in other faults;
Suspicion shall be all stuck full of eyes:
For treason is but trusted like the fox;
Who, ne'er so tame, so cherish'd, and lock'd
up,
Will have a wild trick of his ancestors.
Look how we can, or sad, or merrily,

• It is common for the king to be here seated on a
rum, and to rise at this line: when Falstaff, who
strangely placed behind him, tumbles down, to
reate a very ill-timed Bartholomew-fair laugh.

a princely

If he outlive the envy of this day,
England did never owe so sweet a hope,
So much misconstrued in his wantonness.
Hot. Cousin, I think thou art enamoured
Upon his follies; never did I hear
Of any prince, so wild, at liberty :-
But, be he as he will, yet once ere night
I will embrace him with a soldier's armi,
That he shall shrink under my courtesy.-
Arm, arm, with speed:And, fellows, soldiers,
friends,

Better consider what you have to do,
Than I, that have not well the gift of tongue,
Can lift your blood up with persuasion.

• Own.

Mess. My lord, prepare; the king comes on Under the hoofs of vaunting enemies,

Doug. All's done, all's won; here breathless And heaven forbid a shallow scratch should

but upon the pate.-Soft! who art thou? Sir I am the Douglas, fatal to all those

HENRY IV

That wear those colours on them.-What art
That counterfeit'st the person of a king? [thou,
K. Hen. The king himself; who, Douglas,
grieves at heart,

So many of his shadows thou hast met,
And not the very king. I have two boys,
Seek Percy and thyself about the field:
But, seeing thou fall'st on me so luckily,
I will assay thee; so defend thyself.

Doug. I fear thou art another counterfeit ;
And yet, in faith, thou bear'st thee like a king:
But mine, I am sure, thou art, who'er thou be,
And thus I win thee.

(They fight; the KING being in danger, enter

Prince HENRY.

P. Hen. Hold up thy head, vile Scot, or thou
art like

Never to bold it up again! the spirits
Of Shirley, Stafford, Blunt, are in my arms:
It is the prince of Wales that threatens thee;
Who never promiseth, but he means to pay.-
[They fight; DOUGLAS flies.
Cheerly, my lord; How fares your grace?—
Sir Nicholas Gawsey hath for succour sent,
And so hath Clifton; I'll to Clifton straight.
[life,
K. Hen. Stay, aud breathe a while :-
Thou hast redeem'd thy lost opinion;
And show'd thou mak'st some tender of my
In this fair rescue thou hast brought to ine.
P Hen. O heaven! they did me too much
injury,

That ever said I hearken'd for your death.
If it were so, I might have let alone

. For worms, brave Percy: Fare thee
well, great heart!-

Ill weav'd ambition, how much art thou shrunk !
When that this body did contain a spirit,
A kingdom for it was too small a bound:
But now, two paces of the vilest earth
Is room enough;-This earth, that bears thee
[dead,
Bears not alive so stout a gentleman.

If thou wert sensible of courtesy,

I should not make so dear a show of zeal :-
But let my favours hide thy mangled face;
For doing these fair rites of tenderness.
And, even in thy behalf, I'll thank myself

[Exit.

Thy ignomy sleep with thee in the grave, Adieu, and take thy praise with thee tɔ heaven! [He sees FALSTAFF on the ground. But not remembered in thy epitaph!What! old acquaintance! could not all this flesh Keep in a little life? Poor Jack, farewell! I could have better spar'd a better man. OI should have a heavy miss of thee, If I were much in love with vanity. Death hath not struck so fat a deer to-day, Though many dearer, in this bloody fray :Embowell'd will I see thee by and by; Till then, in blood by noble Percy lie. Fal. [Rising slowly.] Embowelled! if thou 'Sblood, embowel me to-day, I'll give you leave to powder me, and eat me too, to-morrow. 'twas time to counterfeit, or that hot termagant Scot had paid me scot and lot too. Counterfeit? I lie, am no counterfeit: To die, is to be a counterfeit; for he is but the counterfeit of a man, who hath not the life of a man: but to counterfeit dying, when a man thereby liveth, is to be no counterfeit, but the true and perfect image of life indeed. The better part of valour Nich-is-discretion; in the which better part, I have saved my life. 'Zounds, I am afraid of this gunpowder Percy, though he be dead: How, if he should counterfeit too, and rise? I am Therefore I'll make him sure: yea, and I'll afraid he would prove the better counterfeit. swear I killed him. Why may not he rise, as well as I? nothing confutes me but eyes, and nobody sees me. Therefore, Sirrah, [Stabbing him.] with a new wound in your thigh, come you along with me. [Takes HOTSPUR on his back. Re-enter Prince HENRY and Prince JOHN. P. Hen. Come, brother John, full bravely hast thou flesh'd

The insulting hand of Douglas over you;
Which would have been as speedy in your end,
As all the poisonous potions in the world,
And sav'd the treacherous labour of your son.
K. Hen. Make up to Clifton, I'll to Sir
[Exit King HENRY.
olas Gawsey.

Enter HOTSPUR.
Hot. If I mistake not, thou art Harry Mon-
mouth.

P. Hen. Thou speak'st as if I would deny
my name.

Hot. My name is Harry Percy.
P. Hen. Why, then I see

A very valiant rebel of the name.

I am the prince of Wales; and think not, Percy,
To share with me in glory any more:
Two stars keep not their motion in one sphere;
Nor can one England brook a double reign,
Of Harry Percy and the prince of Wales.

Hot. Nor shall it, Harry, for the hour is come
To end the one of us; And 'would to God,
Thy name in arms were now as great as mine!
P. Hen. I'll make it greater, ere I part from
And all the budding honours on thy crest [thee;
I'll crop to make a garland for my head.
Hot. I can no longer brook thy vanities.
[They fight.

Enter EALSTAFF.
Fal. Well said, Hal! to it, Hal!-Nay, you
shall find no boy's play here, I can tell you.
Eater DOUGLAS; he fights with FALSTAFF,
who falls down as if he were dead, and
exit DOUGLAS. HOTSPUR is wounded, and
jalli.

Het. O Harry, thou hast robb'd me of my [youth, I better brook the loss of brittle life, Than those prond titles thou hast won of me; They wound my thoughts, worse than thy sword [fool my flesh;But thought's the slave of life, and life time's And time, that takes survey of all the world, Must have a stop. OI could prophesy, But that the earthy and cold hand of death es on my tongue :-No, Percy, thou art dust, [Dies.

And food for

There is no reason to suppose that Hotspur was
* by the Prince of Wales: he probably tell by an
kun hand.
+ Reputation.

Thy maiden sword.

P. John. But, soft! whom bave we here?
Did you not tell me, this fat man was dead?
P. Hen. I did; I saw him dead, breathless,
[and bleeding
[speak:
pr'ythee
Upon the ground.-

Art thou alive? or is it fantasy
That plays upon

our eyesight?

We will not trust our eyes, without our ears :-
Thou art not what thou seem'st.

Fal. No, that's certain; I am not a double
man but if I be not Jack Falstaff, then am I
There is Percy: [Throwing the body
a Jack.
down.] if your father will do me any honour
So; if not, let him kill the next Percy himself.
look to be either earl or duke, I can assure
you.

P. Hen. Why, Percy I killed myself, and saw thee dead.

Fal. Didst thou Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!-I grant you, I was down, and out of breath; and so was he: but we arose both at an instant, and fought a long hour by Shrewsbury clock. If I may be believed, so; I'll take it upon if not, let them that should reward valour bear the sin upon their own heads. my death, I gave him this wound in the thigh: if the man were alive, and would deny it, I would make him eat a piece of my sword. P. John. This is the strangest tale that e'er I heard.

Scarf, with which he covers Percy s face.

+ Salt. 3 G

P. Hen. This is the strangest fellow, brother
John.-

Come, bring your luggage nobly on your back;
For my part, if a lie may do thee grace,
I'll gild it with the happiest terms I have.

[A Retreat is sounded.
The trumpet sounds retreat, the day is our's.
Come, brother, let's to the highest of the field,
To see what friends are living, who are dead.
[Exeunt Prince HENRY and Prince JOHN.
Fal. I'll follow, as they say for reward. He
that rewards me, God reward him! If I do
grow great, I'll grow less; for I'll purge, and
leave sack, and live cleanly, as a nobleman
should do.
[Exit, bearing off the body.

SCENE V.-Another part of the Field. The Trumpets sound.-Enter King HENRY, Prince HENRY, Prince JOHN, WESTMORELAND and others, with WORCESTER and VERNON, prisoners.

P. Hen. Thus ever did rebellion find re-
buke.-

Ill-spirited Worcester! did we not send grace,
Pardon, and terms of love to all of you!

And would'st thou turn our offers coutrary ?
Misuse the tenor of thy kinsman's trust?
Three knights upon our party slain to-day,
A noble earl, and many a creature else,
Had been alive this hour,

If, like a Christian, thou hadst truly borne
Betwixt our armies true intelligence.

K. Hen. Bear Worcester to the death, and
Vernon too :

Other offenders we will pause upon.-
[Exeunt WORCESTER and VERNON, guarded.
How goes the field ?

P. Hen. The noble Scot, lord Douglas, when
he saw

The fortune of the day quite turn'd from him,
The noble Percy slain and all his men
Upon the foot of fear,-fled with the rest
And, falling from a hill, he was so bruis'd,
That the pursuers took him. At my tent
The Douglas is; And I beseech your grace,
I may dispose of him.

K. Hen. With all my heart.

P. Hen. Then, brother John of Lancaster to
This honourable bounty shall belong : [you
Go to the Douglas and deliver him
Up to his pleasure, ransomless, and free:
His valour, shown upon our crests to-day,
Hath taught us how to cherish such high deeds,
Even in the bosom of our adversaries.

K. Hen. Then this remains, that we divide
our power.-

You, son John, and my cousin Westmoreland,
Towards York shall bend you, with your dearest
speed,

To meet Northumberland and the prelate
Scroop,

Who, as we hear, are busily in arms :
Myself and you, son Harry, will towards Wales,
To fight with Glendower and the earl of March.
Rebellion in this land shall lose his sway,

Wor. What I have done, my safety urged me Meeting the check of such another day:

to;

And I embrace this fortune patiently,

Since not to be avoided it falls on me.

And since this business so fair is done,
Let us not leave till all our own he won.

[Exeunt.