XX.

3 KING HENRY VI.

ACT iii. SCENE 1.-THE KING AND THE KEEPERS.

[After the Battle of Towton, referred to in § XIX., Henry VI. fled into Scotland, while his wife, Margaret of Anjou, retired to France to seek the aid of the French king. The throne of England was obtained by Edward, eldest son of the Duke of York, who first commenced the Wars of the Roses; the title of this new king was Edward IV. The following scene, which is perhaps not historically true, represents the unfortunate Henry captured in a forest by two keepers, with whom he converses on his misfortunes.]

SCENE: A forest in the north of England.

Enter two KEEPERS, with cross-bows in their hands. First Keep. Under this thick-grown brake we'll shroud ourselves;

For through this laund anon the deer will come;
And in this covert will we make our stand,

Culling the principal of all the deer.

Sec. Keep. I'll stay above the hill, so both may shoot.
First Keep. That cannot be; the noise of thy cross bow
Will scare the herd, and so my shoot is lost.

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Here stand we both, and aim we at the best;

And, for the time shall not seem tedious,
I'll tell thee what befel me on a day

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In this self-place where now we mean to stand. Sec. Keep. Here comes a man; let's stay till he be past.

Enter KING HENRY, disguised, with a prayer-book. K. Hen. From Scotland am I stol'n, even of pure love, To greet mine own land with my wishful sight. No, Harry, Harry, 'tis no land of thine;

1. Brake.-Thicket.

1. Shroud.-Hide.

2. Laund.-Lawn; an open space between woods.

2. Anon.-See § VIII. note 52.

4. Culling.-Picking out; choosing.

6. Cross bow.-A bow from which arrows were shot.

9. For the time. So that the time; in order that the time. 11. This self-place.—This selfsame, or very place,

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Thy place is fill'd, thy sceptre wrung from thee,
Thy balm wash'd off wherewith thou wast anointed;
No bending knee will call thee Cæsar now;
No humble suitors press to speak for right;

No, not a man comes for redress of thee;
For how can I help them, and not myself?
First Keep. Ay, here's a deer whose skin's a keeper's fee;

This is the quondam king; let's seize upon him.

K. Hen. Let me embrace thee, sour adversity,

For wise men say it is the wisest course.
Sec. Keep. Why linger we? let us lay hands upon him.
First Keep. Forbear awhile; we'll hear a little more.
K. Hen. My queen and son are gone to France for aid;
And, as I hear, the great commanding Warwick
Is thither gone, to crave the French king's sister
To wife for Edward; if this news be true,

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Poor queen and son, your labour is but lost;

And Lewis a prince soon won with moving words.

By this account then Margaret may win him;

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For she's a woman to be pitied much;

Her sighs will make a battery in his breast;

Her tears will pierce into a marble heart;

16. Sceptre. The golden staff held by a king as a sign of his authority. 17. Balm.-The holy oil used in anointing a king.

18. Will call thee Cæsar.-This does not imply that kings of England were ever called Cæsar; but means, "will look upon thee as king;" Cæsar being a name for so many emperors of Rome, has come to be used often for the kingly office generally.

23. Quondam.-Former; the word is a Latin adverb meaning formerly; but is used here, and generally, as an English adjective.

28. My queen and son.-Margaret of Anjou, and Edward Prince of Wales. 29. Warwick.-The Earl of Warwick, first on the York side, afterwards the strongest supporter of Henry; he is known as the "kingmaker."

31. Edward.-Edward the Fourth.

33. A subtle orator.-A clever speaker.

34. Lewis.-The King of France. His name (Louis) is here spelt in English fashion, and should be so pronounced,

The tiger will be mild whiles she doth mourn;
And Nero will be tainted with remorse,

To hear and see her plaints, her brinish tears.
Ay, but she's come to beg, Warwick, to give;
She, on his left side, craving aid for Henry,
He, on his right, asking a wife for Edward.
She weeps, and says her Henry is depos'd;
He smiles, and says his Edward is install'd;
That she, poor wretch, for grief can speak no more;
Whiles Warwick tells his title, smooths the wrong,
Inferreth arguments of mighty strength,

And in conclusion wins the king from her,
With promise of his sister, and what else,

To strengthen and support king Edward's place.
O Margaret, thus 'twill be; and thou, poor soul,
Art then forsaken, as thou went'st forlorn!

Sec. Keep. Say, what art thou, that talk'st of kings and

queens?

K. Hen. More than I seem, and less than I was born to;
A man at least, for less I should not be;
And men may talk of kings, and why not I?
Sec. Keep. Ay, but thou talk'st as if thou wert a king.
K. Hen. Why, so I am, in mind; and that's enough.
Sec. Keep. But, if thou be a king, where is thy crown?
K. Hen. My crown is in my heart, not on my head;

Not deck'd with diamonds and Indian stones,
Nor to be seen; my crown is called content;
A crown it is that seldom kings enjoy.

Sec. Keep. Well, if you be a king crown'd with content,

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40. Nero. The name of a cruel emperor of Rome, used as a name for cruelty in general; here it means "one as cruel as Nero was.”

41, Plaints.-Complaints; lamentations.

45. Depos'd.-Put off from the throne.

46. Install'd. The opposite of deposed; put into an office.

47. That she.-Understand so before that.

47. Poor wretch.-In Shakespeare's time this had a tender meaning, something like "poor unhappy being.”

51. What else.--This is equal to "whatever else he could do."

Your crown content and you must be contented
To go along with us; for, as we think,

You are the king King Edward hath depos'd;
And we his subjects sworn in all allegiance
Will apprehend you as his enemy.

K. Hen. But did you never swear, and break an oath?
Sec. Keep. No, never such an oath; nor will not now.

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K. Hen. Where did you dwell when I was King of England? Sec. Keep. Here in this country, where we now remain.

K. Hen. I was anointed king at nine months old;

My father and my grandfather were kings,

And you were sworn true subjects unto me; And tell me, then, have you not broke your oaths? First Keep. No;

For we were subjects but while you were king.
K. Hen. Why, an I dead? do I not breathe a man?

Ah, simple men, you know not what you swear!
Look, as I blow this feather from my face,
And as the air blows it to me again,
Obeying with my wind when I do blow,
And yielding to another when it blows,
Commanded always by the greater gust:
Such is the lightness of you common men.
But do not break your oaths; for of that sin
My mild entreaty shall not make you guilty,

Go where you will, the king shall be commanded;
And be you kings, command, and I'll obey.

First Keep. We are true subjects to the king, King Edward.
K. Hen. So would you be again to Henry,

If he were seated as King Edward is.

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First Keep. We charge you, in God's name and in the king's,

70. Allegiance.-Obedience; fidelity. 77. My father.-Henry the Fifth.

77. My grandfather.-Henry the Fourth.

79. Broke. After have we should use the perfect participle broken. The rule was not strict in Shakespeare's time. See § XII. note 32. 92. The king shall be commanded.-The king's commands shall be

respected.

To go with us unto the officers.

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K. Hen. In God's name, lead; your king's name be obeyed;
And what God will, that let your king perform;
And what he will, I humbly yield unto.

[Exeunt.

XXI.

KING RICHARD III.

ACT i. SCENE 4.-THE DREAM OF CLARENCE.

[Although this play is entitled "Richard III.," it embraces the reigns of Edward IV., Edward V., and Richard III. Edward IV. is the king who wrested the crown from Henry VI., and who was the subject of the argument between the king and the keepers, in § XX. This Edward IV. had two brothers, George, Duke of Clarence, who is the chief speaker in the scene we are now entering upon, and Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who became King Richard III. after the deaths of his brother and nephew. At the time to which this scene refers, the Duke of Clarence was a prisoner in the Tower of London, where, shortly afterwards, he was put to death, probably by the secret order of his brother Gloucester, who was aiming to obtain the crown, and cared nothing what means he employed to bring about his wishes. Brakenbury was lieutenant of the Tower, and therefore, so to speak, the keeper of the Duke of Clarence.]

SCENE: The Tower of London.

Brak. Why looks your grace so heavily to-day?
Clar. O, I have pass'd a miserable night,

So full of ugly sights, of ghastly dreams,
That, as I am a Christian faithful man,
I would not spend another such a night,
Though 'twere to buy a world of happy days,
So full of dismal terror was the time!

Brak. What was your dream? I long to hear you tell it.
Clar. Methought that I had broken from the Tower,

And was embark'd to cross to Burgundy;
And, in my company, my brother Gloucester;

1. Your grace. The proper mode of addressing a duke.
9. Methought. It seemed to me. See § VIII. note 15.

10. Burgundy.-A province of France.

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11. My brother Gloucester.-Richard, Duke of Gloucester, afterwards

Richard III.