HENRI E the Fourth.

Enter the king, lord Iohn of Lancaster, earle of Weftmerland, with others.

S

King.

O fhaken as we are, fo wan with care,

Find we a time for frighted peace to pant,

And breath short winded accents of new broiles

To be commenc't in ftronds a farre remote :

No more the thirstie entrance of this foile,

Shall daube her lippes with her owne childrens blood:
No more fhall trenching warre channel her fields,
Nor brufe her flourets * with the armed hoofes
Of hoftile paces: thofe oppofed eyes,

Which like the meteors of a troubled heauen,
All of one nature, of one substance bred,
Did lately meete in the inteftine fhocke,
And furious clofe of ciuill butcherie,
Shall now in mutuall wel-befceming ranckes,
March all one way, and be no more oppos'd
Against acquaintance, kindred and allyes.
The edge of warre, like an ill-fheathed knife,
No more fhall cut his maifter: therefore friends,
As farre as to the fepulchre of Christ,
Whose fouldier now vnder whose blessed croffe,
We are impreffed and ingag'd to fight,
Foorthwith a power of English fhall we leuy,

* flowers.

VOL. II.

Cc

Whofe

Whofe armes were moulded in their mothers wombs,
To chafe thefe Pagans in thofe holy fieldes,
Ouer whofe acres walkt thofe bleffed feete,
Which 1400. yeares agoe were nailde,

For our aduantage on the bitter crofle :

*

But this our purpose is twelue month old,
And bootles tis to tell you we will go.
Therefore we meete not now: then let me heare
Of you my gentle coofen Weftmerland,
What yefternight our counsell did decree,
In forwarding this † deere expedience.

Weft. My liege, this hafte was hot in question,
And many limits of the charge fet downe
But yefternight, when all athwart there came
A poft from Wales, loaden with heauy newes;
Whose worst was, that the noble Mortimer,
Leading the men of Herdfordshire to fight
Against the irregular and wilde Glendower,
Was by the rude handes of that Welchman taken,
A thousand of his people butchered :

Vpon whofe dead corps there was such misuse,
Such beastly shameles transformation
By thofe Welchwomen done, as may not be
(Without much shame) retold or spoken of.

King. It feemes then, that the tidings of this broile,
Brake off our bufines for the Holy Land.

Weft. This matcht with other like 1, my gracious L.
Far more vneuen and vnwelcome newes,

Came from the north, and thus it did report §:
On Holy-roode day, the gallant Hotspur there
Young Harry Percy, and braue Archibald,
That euer valiant and approued Scot,

At Holmedon met, where they did spend

is but. + bis. I did.

For.

Simport.

+ very,

A fad

A fad and bloody houre:

As by discharge of their artillarie,

And shape of likelihood the newes was told:
For he that brought them, in the very heate
And pride of their contention, did take horse,
Vncertaine of the issue any way.

King. Here is a deare, and true industrious friend,
Sir Walter Blunt, new lighted from his horse,
Stainde with the variation of each foyle,

Betwixt that Holmedon, and this feat of ours;
And he hath brought vs smooth and welcome newes,
The earle of Dowglas is discomfited,

Ten thousand bold Scots, two and twentie knights
Balkt in their owne blood did fir Walter fee

On Helmedons plaines: of prisoners Hotspur tooke
Mordake earle of Fife, and eldest sonne

To beaten Dowglas and the earle of Atholl
Of Murrey, Angus, and Menteith:

And is not this an honourable spoyle?

A gallant prize? ha, coofen is it not? in fayth it is.

Weft. A conqueft for a prince to boast of.

King. Yea, there thou mak'st me fad, and mak'st me finne

In enuy, that my lord Northumberland,

Should be the father of fo bleft a fonne :

A fonne, who is the theame of honours tongue,
Amongst a groue, the very ftraightest plant,
Who is sweete fortunes minion and her pride,
Whilft I by looking on the praise of him,
See ryot and difhonour ftaine the brow
Of my young Harry. O that it could be prou'd,
That fome night-tripping fairy had exchangde
In cradle-clothes, our children where they lay,
And cal'd mine Percy, his Plantagenet;
Then would I haue his Harry, and he mine,

But let him from my thoughtes: what thinke you coofe
Of this young Percies pride? the prisoners
Which he in this aduenture had furprifde,

To his owne vse he keepes, and fendes me word

I fhall haue none but Mordake earle of Fife.

Weft. This is his vnckles teaching; this is Worcester, Maleuolent to you in all aspectes:

Which makes him prune himselfe, and bristle vp

The crest of youth against your dignitie.

King. But I haue fent for him to answere this: And for this caufe a while we must neglect

Our holy purpose to Ierufalem.

Coofen, on Wednesday next, our counsell we will hold

At Winfor, fo informer the lords:

But come your felfe with speed to vs againe,

For more is to be fayd, and to be done,

Then out of anger can be vttered.

Weft. I will my liege.

Enter prince of Wales and fir Iohn Falstaffe.

Falf. Now Hal, what time of day is it lad?

Exeunt.

Prince. Thou art fo fat-witted with drinking of old facke, and vnbuttoning thee after fupper, and fleeping vpon benches after noone, that thou haft forgotten to demaund that truely, which thou wouldeft truely know. What a deuill haft thou to doe with the time of the day? vnleffe houres were cups of facke, and minutes capons, and clocks the tongues of bawdes, and dials the fignes of leaping houses, and the blessed funne himfelfe a faire hot wench in flame coulered taffata; I fee no reason why thou shouldest be fuperfluous to demaund the time of the day.

Falf. Indeed you come neere me now Hal, for we that take purfes, goe by the moone and † feuen starres, and not by Phoebus, he, that wandring knight fo faire: and I prethee

fweete wagge, when thou art king, as God faue thy grace; maiefty I should say, for grace thou wilt haue none.

Prince. What none?

Falf. No by my troth, not fo much as will ferue to be prologue to an egge and butter.

Prince, Well, how then? come roundly, roundly.

Falf. Marry then, fweet wag, when thou art king, let not vs that are fquires of the nights body, be called theeues of the dayes beauty let vs be Dianaes forrefters, gentlemen of the shade, minions of the moone; and let men fay, we be men of good gouernment, being gouerned as the fea is, by our noble and chast mistris the moone; vnder whofe countenaunce we fteale.

Prince. Thou fayeft well, and it holdes well too, for the fortune of vs that are the moones men, doth ebbe and flow like the fea, being gouerned as the fea is by the moone; as for proofe. Now a purfe of gold moft refolutely fnatcht on Monday night, and most dissolutly spent on Tuesday morning; got with fwearing lay by, and fpent with crying bring in : now in as low an ebbe as the foote of the ladder, and by and by in as high a flow as the ridge of the gallowes.

:

Falf. By the lord thou faieft true lad and is not my hofteffe of the tauerne a most sweet wench?

Prince. As the hony of Hibla, my old lad of the castle; and is not a buffe ierkin a most sweet robe of durance?

Falf. How now, how now mad wagge, what in thy quips and thy quiddities? what a plague haue I to doe with a buffe ierkin?

Prince. Why what a poxe haue I to doe with my hofteffe of the tauerne?

Falf. Well, thou hast cald her to a reckoning many a time and oft.

Prince. Did I euer call for thee to pay thy part?

Falf. No, Ile giue thee thy due, thou haft payd all there.