Thy God's, and truth's; then if thou fall'st, O Crom well, Thou fall'st a blessed martyr. Serve the king; There take an inventory of all I have, To the last penny; 't is the king's: my robe, I dare now call mine own. O Cromwell, Cromwell, Crom. Good sir, have patience. Wol. So I have. Farewell The hopes of court! my hopes in heaven do dwell. [Exeunt. ACT IV. SCENE I-A Street in Westminster. Enter Two Gentlemen, meeting. 1 Gent. You are well met once again. 2 Gent. And so are you. 1 Gent. You come to take your stand here, and be hold The lady Anne pass from her coronation? 2 Gent. T is all my business. At our last encounter, The duke of Buckingham came from his trial. 1 Gent. "T is very true: but that time offer'd sorrow; This general joy. 2 Gent. "T is well: The citizens, I am sure, have shown at full their royal minds, (As, let them have their rights, they are ever forward,) In celebration of this day with shows, Pageants, and sights of honour. 1 Gent. Never greater, Nor, I'll assure you, better taken, sir. 2 Gent. May I be bold to ask what that contains, That paper in your hand? 1 Gent. Yes; 't is the list Of those that claim their offices this day, By custom of the coronation. The duke of Suffolk is the first, and claims To be high steward; next, the duke of Norfolk, He to be earl marshal: you may read the rest. 2 Gent. I thank you, sir; had I not known those customs, I should have been beholding to your paper. a Beholding.-This is not a corrupt word, but one constantly used by the writers of Shakspere's day. We have an example of it in Greene's 'Groat's Worth of Wit.' But, I beseech you, what 's become of Katharine, 1 Gent. That I can tell you too. The archbishop 2 Gent. Álas, good lady!- [Trumpets. The trumpets sound: stand close, the queen is coming. THE ORDER OF THE PROCESSION. A lively flourish of Trumpets: then, enter, 1. Two Judges. 2. Lord Chancellor, with the purse and mace before him. 3. Choristers singing. [Music. 4. Mayor of London bearing the mace. Then Garter, in his coat of arms, and, on his head, a gilt cop per crown. 5. Marquis Dorset, bearing a sceptre of gold, on his head a demi-coronal of gold. With him, the Earl of Surrey, bearing the rod of silver with the dove, crowned with an earl's coronet. Collars of SS. 6. Duke of Suffolk, in his robe of estate, his coronet on his head, bearing a long white wand, as high-steward. With him, the Duke of Norfolk, with the rod of marshalship, a coronet on his head. Collars of SS. 7. A canopy borne by four of the Cinque-ports; under it, the Queen in her robe; in her hair richly adorned with pearl, crowned. On each side of her, the Bishops of London and Winchester. 8. The old Duchess of Norfolk, in a coronal of gold, wrought with flowers, bearing the Queen's train. 9. Certain Ladies or Countesses, with plain circlets of gold without flowers. .-These I know ; 2 Gent. A royal train, believe me.-' Who's that that bears the sceptre? 1 Gent. Marquis Dorset : And that the earl of Surrey, with the rod. 2 Gent. A bold brave gentleman: and that should be The duke of Suffolk. 1 Gent. 'Tis the same; high-steward. 2 Gent. And that my lord of Norfolk? 1 Gent. 2 Gent. Yes. Heaven bless thee! [Looking on the QUEEN. Thou hast the sweetest face I ever look'd on. Sir, as I have a soul, she is an angel; Our king has all the Indies in his arms, And more, and richer, when he strains that lady; 1 Gent. They that bear The cloth of honour over her, are four barons Of the Cinque-ports. 2 Gent. Those men are happy; and so are all, are near her. I take it, she that carries up the train Is that old noble lady, duchess of Norfolk. 1 Gent. It is; and all the rest are countesses. 2 Gent. Their coronets say so. These are stars, in deed; And, sometimes, falling ones. 1 Gent. No more of that. [Exit Procession, with a great flourish of trumpets. Enter a Third Gentleman. God save you, sir! where have you been broiling? 3 Gent. Among the crowd i' the abbey; where a finger Could not be wedg'd in more; I am stifled With the mere rankness of their joy. 2 Gent. You saw the ceremony? 3 Gent. That I did. 1 Gent. How was it? The rich stream 3 Gent. Well worth the seeing. 2 Gent. Good sir, speak it to us. 3 Gent. As well as I am able. Of lords, and ladies, having brought the queen To a prepar'd place in the choir, fell off A distance from her: while her grace sat down To rest a while, some half an hour, or so, In a rich chair of state, opposing freely The beauty of her person to the people. Believe me, sir, she is the goodliest woman That ever lay by man: which when the people Had the full view of, such a noise arose As the shrouds make at sea in a stiff tempest, As loud, and to as many tunes: hats, cloaks, Doublets, I think, flew up: and had their faces Been loose, this day they had been lost. Such joy I never saw before. Great-bellied women, That had not half a week to like rams go, In the old time of war, would shake the press, And make them reel before them. No man living Could say, "This is my wife," there; all were woven So strangely in one piece. 2 Gent. a But, what follow'd? 3 Gent. At length her grace rose, and with modest paces Came to the altar: where she kneel'd, and, saint-like, Cast her fair eyes to heaven, and pray'd devoutly. a Rams-battering-rams. |