The Dramatic and Poetical Works of Robert Greene and George Peele

Alarum sounded; both the battles offer to meet, and, just as they are joining, enter SIR CUTHBERT ANDERSON and LADY ANDERSON, with QUEEN DOROTHEA richly attired, and NANO.

Q. Dor. I am the whelp, bred by this lion up,
This royal English King, my happy sire:
Poor Nano is the hind that tended me.

Sir Cuth. Stay, princes, wage not war: a privy My father, Scottish King, gave me to thee,

grudge

"Twixt such as you,'most high in majesty,
Afflicts both nocent and the innocent.

How many swords, dear princes, see I drawn !
The friend against his friend, a deadly fiend ;*
A desperate division in those lands
Which, if they join in one, command the world.

O, stay! with reason mitigate your rage;
And let an old man, humbled on his knees,
Entreat a boon, good princes, of you both.
K. of Eng. I condescend, for why thy reve-
rend years

Import some news of truth and consequence.
K. of Scots. I am content,‡ for, Anderson, I know
Thou art my subject and dost mean me good.
Sir Cuth. But by your gracious favours grant
me this,

To swear upon your sword[s] to do me right.
K. of Eng. See, by my sword and by a prince's
In every lawful sort I am thine own.

[faith,

K. of Scots. And, by my sceptre and the Scottish crown,

I am resolv'd to grant thee thy request.

Sir Cuth. I see you trust me, princes, who The weight of such a war upon my will. [repose Now mark my suit. A tender lion's whelp, This other day, came straggling in the woods, Attended by a young and tender hind, In courage haught,§ yet 'tirèd like a lamb. The prince of beasts had left this young in keep, To foster up as love-mate and compeer, Unto the lion's mate, a || neighbour-friend: This stately guide, seduced by the fox, Sent forth an eager wolf, bred in France, That grip'd the tender whelp and wounded it. By chance, as I was hunting in the woods,

I heard the moan the hind made for the whelp :
I took them both and brought them to my house.
With chary care I have recur'd ¶ the one;
And since I know the lions are at strife
About the loss and damage of the young,

I bring her home; make claim to her who list.
[Discovers QUEEN DOROTHEA.

tend] The 4to. "friend." t for why] i. e. because.

I am content, &c.] The 4to. gives this line to the King of England.

§ haught] The 4to. "hautie."-See note ‡, p. 117, sec.

col.

a] Qy. "and"?

¶recur'd] i, e. recovered.

A hapless wife: thou, quite misled by youth,
Hast sought sinister loves and foreign joys.
The fox Ateukin, cursèd parasite,

Incens'd your grace to send the wolf abroad,
The French-born Jaques, for to end my days:
He, traitorous man, pursu'd me in the woods,
And left me wounded; where this noble knight
Both rescu'd me and mine, and sav'd my life.
Now keep thy promise: Dorothea lives;
Give Anderson his due and just reward:
And since, you kings, your wars began by me,
Since I am safe, return, surcease your fight.

K. of Scots. Durst I presume to look upon those eyes

Which I have tirèd with a world of woes,
Or did I think submission were enough,
Or sighs might make an entrance to my soul,
You heavens, you know how willing I would
weep;

You heavens can tell how glad I would submit;
You heavens can say how firmly I would sigh.
Q. Dor. Shame me not, prince, companion in

thy bed:

Youth hath misled,-tut, but a little fault:
'Tis kingly to amend what is amiss.

Might I with twice as many pains as these
Unite our hearts, then should my wedded lord
See how incessant labours I would take.-
My gracious father, govern your affects:
Give me that hand, that oft hath blest this head,
And clasp thine arms, that have embrac'd this
[neck],

About the shoulders of my wedded spouse.
Ah, mighty prince, this king and I am one!
Spoil thou his subjects, thou despoilest me;
Touch thou his breast, thou dost attaint this
heart:

O, be my father, then, in loving him!

K. of Eng. Thou provident kind mother of

increase,

Thou must prevail, ah, Nature, thou must rule! Hold, daughter, join my hand and his in one;

I will embrace him for to favour thee:

I call him friend, and take him for my son. Q. Dor. Ah, royal husband, see what God hath wrought!

Thy foe is now thy friend.-Good men-at-arms, Do you the like.-These nations if they join, What monarch, with his liege-men, in this world, Dare but encounter you in open field?

K. of Scots. All wisdom, join'd with godly (As I have wrong'd indeed both you and yours), piety!

Thou English king, pardon my former youth;
And pardon, courteous queen, my great misdeed;
And, for assurance of mine after-life,
I take religious vows before my God,
To honour thee for father,* her for wife.

Sir Cuth. But yet+ my boons, good princes, are
not pass'd.

First, English king, I humbly do request,
That by your means our princess may unite
Her love unto mine aldertruest love,

Now you will love, maintain, and help them both.
K. of Eng. Good Anderson, I grant thee thy
request.

Sir. Cuth. But you, my prince, must yield me mickle more.

You know your nobles are your chiefest stays, And long time have been banish'd from your court:

Embrace and reconcile them to yourself;

They are your hands, whereby you ought to work.
As for Ateukin and his lewd compeers,
That sooth'd you in your sins and youthly pomp,
Exile, torment, and punish such as they;
For greater vipers never may be found
Within a state than such aspiring heads,
That reck not how they climb, so that they
climb.

K. of Scots. Guid knight, I grant thy suit.-
First I submit,

And humbly § crave a pardon of your grace.—
Next, courteous queen, I pray thee by thy loves
Forgive mine errors past and pardon me.-
My lords and princes, if I have misdone

father] The 4to. "fauour."

But yet, &c.] The 4to. gives to Lady Anderson this and the next speech of Sir Cuthbert Anderson.

aldertruest] i. e. truest of all,-alder being used as the genitive of all. So Chaucer has "alderfirst"; and Shakespeare, and our author in a poem in his Mourning Garment (see post), have “alderliefest."

§ humbly] The 4to. "humble."

Hereafter, trust me, you are dear to me.
As for Ateukin, whoso finds the man,

Let him have martial law, and straight be hang'd,
As all his vain abettors now are dead.*
And Anderson our treasurer shall pay
Three thousand marks for friendly recompense.
Nano.+ But, princes, whilst you friend it thus
in one,

Methinks of friendship Nano shall have none.
Q. Dor. What would my dwarf, that I will
not bestow?

Nano. My boon, fair queen, is this, that you
would go:

Although my body is but small and neat,
My stomach, after toil, requireth meat:
An easy suit, dread princess; will you wend?
K. of Scots. Art thou a pigmy-born, my pretty

friend?

Nano. Not so, great king, but nature, when she fram'd me,

Was scant of earth, and Nano therefore nam'd
me;

And, when she saw my body was so small,
She gave me wit to make it big withal.
K. of Scots. Till time when.‡
Q Dor. Eat, then.

K. of Scots. My friend, it stands with wit,
To take repast when stomach serveth it.

Q. Dor. Thy policy, my Nano, shall prevail.-
Come, royal father, enter we my tent:-
And, soldiers, feast it, frolic it, like friends :-
My princes, bid this kind and courteous train
Partake some favours of our late accord.
Thus wars have end, and, after dreadful hate,
Men learn at last to know their good estate.

[Exeunt omnes.

*As all his vain abettors now are dead] The 4to.; "As (all his vaine arbetters now are diuided).' Nano] The 4to. "L. Andr."

Till time when] To this and the next speech of the King of Scots the 4to. prefixes merely "K." Part of the text appears to be wanting here.

ALPHONSUS, KING OF ARRAGON.

The Comicall Historie of Alphonsus, King of Aragon. As it hath bene sundrie times Acted. Made by R.G. Brinted (sic) by Thomas Creede. 1599. 4to.

London

Medea] Greene is not the only modern poet who has introduced an enchantress of this name, distinct from the ancient one: see Tasso's Rinaldo, Canto. x.

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