When that this body did contain a spirit, Is room enough:-This earth that bears the dead If thou wert sensible of courtesy, I should not make so dear a show of zeal :— Adieu, and take thy praise with thee to heaven! But not remember'd in thy epitaph !— [He sees FALSTAFF on the ground. 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. O, I should have a heavy miss of thee, [Exit. Fal. [rising slowly.] Embowelled! if thou embowel me to-day, I'll give you leave to powder me, and eat me too, to-morrow. 'Sblood, 'twas time to counterfeit, or that hot termagant Scot had paid me scot and lot too. Counterfeit? I lie, I 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 6 But let my favours hide thy mangled face ;] He covers his face with a scarf, to hide the ghastliness of death. 7 so fat a deer -] There is in these lines a very natural mixture of the serious and ludicrous, produced by the view of Percy and Falstaff. counterfeit, but the true and perfect image of life indeed. The better part of valour 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 afraid, he would prove the better counterfeit. Therefore I'll make him sure: yea, and I'll 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 Thy maiden sword. P. John. But, soft! whom have we here? Did you not tell me, this fat man was dead? P. Hen. I did; I saw him dead, breathless and bleed ing Upon the ground †.— Art thou alive? or is it phantasy That plays upon our eyesight? I pr'ythee, speak ; Fal. No, that's certain; I am not a double man': but if I be not Jack Falstaff, then am I a Jack. There is Percy [throwing the body down.] if your father will do me any honour, so; if not, let him kill the next Percy himself. I look to be either earl or duke, I can assure you. P. Hen. Why, Percy I killed myself, and saw thee dead. +"On the ground.”—MALONE. 8 - a double man :] That is, I am not Falstaff and Percy together, though, having Percy on my back, I seem double. 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 rose both at an instant, and fought a long hour by Shrewsbury clock. If I may be believed, so; if not, let them, that should reward valour, bear the sin upon their own heads. I'll take it upon 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. 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 ours. [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. K. Hen. Thus ever did rebellion find rebuke.Ill-spirited Worcester! did we not send grace, Pardon, and terms of love to all of you? And would'st thou turn our offers contrary? If, like a Christian, thou hadst truly borne Wor. What I have done, my safety urg'd me to; And I embrace this fortune patiently, Since not to be avoided it falls on me. 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 Upon the foot of fear,-fled with the rest; K. Hen. With all my heart. P. Hen. Then, brother John of Lancaster, to you This honourable bounty shall belong: Go to the Douglas, and deliver him Up to his pleasure, ransomeless, 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, + "Hath shown us"-MALONE. Who, as we hear, are busily in arms: Myself, and you, son Harry,-will towards Wales, [Exeunt. END OF THE FOURTH VOLUME. GILBERT & RIVINGTON, Printers, St. John's Square, London. |