T'obey in all your Daughters' hard commands: And bring you, where both fire and food is ready. Kent. My good lord, take his offer, Go into th' house. Lear. I'll talk a word with this fame learned Theban : What is your ftudy? Edg. How to prevent the fiend, and to kill vermin. Lear. Let us ask you one word in private. Kent. Importune him once more to go, my lord; His Wits begin t'unfettle. Glo. Can't thou blame him? [Storm fill. His Daughters feek his death: ah, that good Kent! He faid, it would be thus; poor banish'd man! Thou fay'ft, the King grows mad; I'll tell thee, friend, I'm almost mad my felf; I had a fon, Now out-law'd from my blood; he fought my life, But lately, very late; I lov'd him, friend, No father his fon dearer true to tell thee, The grief hath craz'd my wits. What a night's this? I do befeech your Grace. Lear. O cry you mercy, Sir: Noble Philofopher, your company. Edg. Tom's a-cold. Glo. In, fellow, into th' hovel; keep thee warm. Lear. Come, let's in all. Kent. This way, my lord. Lear. With him ; I will keep ftill with my Philofopher. Kent. Good my lord, footh him; let him take the fellow. Glo. Take him you on. Kent. Sirrah, come on; along with us. Lear. Come, good Athenian. Glo. No words, no words, hufh. Edg. Child Rowland to the dark tower came, His word was ftill, fie, foh, and fum, I smell the blood of a British man. [Exeunt. SCENE changes to Glo'fter's Caftle. Enter Cornwall, and Edmund. Corn. Edm. How, my lord, I may be cenfur'd, Will have revenge, ere I depart his house. that Nature thus gives way to loyalty, fomething fears me to think of. Corn. I now perceive, it was not altogether your brother's evil difpofition made him feek his death: but a provoking merit, fet a-work by a reprovable badness in himself. Edm. How malicious is my fortune, that I must repent to be juft? this is the letter, which he spoke of; which approves him an intelligent party to the advantages of France. Oh heavens! that this treafon were not ; or not I the detector! Corn. Go with me to the Dutchess. Edm. If the matter of this paper be certain, you have mighty bufinefs in hand. Corn. True or false, it hath made thee Earl of Glofter: feek out where thy father is, that he may be ready for our Apprehenfion. Edm. If I find him comforting the King, it will fluff his fufpicion more fully. -- [afide.] I will perfevere in my course of loyalty, though the conflict be fore between that and my blood. Corn. I will lay truft upon thee; and thou fhalt find a dearer father in my love. [Exeunt. SCENE, a Chamber, in a Farm-house. Enter Kent and Glo'fter. Glo. H thankfully: I will piece out the comfort "ERE is better than the open Air, take it with what addition I can; I will not be long from you. [Exit. Kent. Kent. All the power of his wits has given way to his impatience the Gods reward your kindness! Enter Lear, Edgar, and Fool. Edg. Fraterreto calls me, and tells me, Nero is an angler in the lake of darkness: pray innocent, and beware the foul fiend. (16) Fool. Pr'ythee, nuncle, tell me, whether a madman be a gentleman, or a yeoman ? Lear. A King, a King. Fool. No, he's a yeoman that has a gentleman to his fon for he's a mad yeoman, that fees his fon a gentleman before him. Lear. To have a thousand with red burning fpits Come hizzing in upon 'em Edg. The foul fiend bites my back.. Fool. He's mad that trufts in the tameness of a wolf, the health of a horse, the love of a boy, or the oath of a whore. Lear. It fhall be done, I will arraign 'em ftrait. Come, fit thou here, most learned justicer; Thou fapient Sir, fit here- now, ye fhe-foxes! Edg. Look, where fhe ftands and glares. Wanteft thou eyes At tryal, Madam ? Come o'er the Broom, Beffy, to me. Fool. Her Boat hath a Leak, and she must not speak, Why he dares not come over to thee. Edg. The foul fiend haunts poor Tom in the voice of a nightingale. Hopdance cries in Tom's belly for two white Herrings. Croak not, black angel, I have no food. for thee. Kent. How do you, Sir? ftand you not fo amaz'd ; Will you lye down, and reft upon the Cushions? (16) Fraterrito calls me, ] As Mr. Pope had begun to infert feveral Speeches in the mad Way, in this Scene, from the Old Edition; I have ventur'd to replace feveral others, which stand upon the fame Footing, and had an equal right of being reftor'd, Lear. Lear. I'll fee their tryal first, bring me in the evidence. Thou robed man of juftice, take thy place; And thou his yoke-fellow of equity, Bench by his fide. You are o'th' commiffion, fit you too. Edg. Let us deal juftly. Sleepeft, or wakeft thou, jolly Shepherd? Thy Sheep be in the Corn; And for one Blaft of thy minikin Mouth, Purre, the Cat, is grey. Lear. Arraign her firft, 'tis Gonerill. I here take my Oath before this honourable Affembly, the kick'd the poor King her Father. Fool. Come hither, Mistress, is your name Gonerill? Lear. She cannot deny it. Fool. Cry you mercy, I took you for a Joint-stool. Lear. And here's another, whofe warpt Looks pro claim - What store her Heart is made of. Stop her there ; Kent. O pity! Sir, where is the patience now, That you fo oft have boasted to retain ? Edg. My tears begin to take his part fo much, They mar my counterfeiting. Lear. The little dogs and all, [Afide. Tray, Blanch, and Sweet-heart, fee, they bark at me Edg. Tom will throw his head at them; avaunt, you curs! Be thy mouth or black or white, Do, de, de, de: Seffey, come, march to wakes and fairs, And And market towns; poor Tom, thy horn is dry. Lear. Then let them anatomize Regan fee what breeds about her heart-Is there any cause in nature that makes these hard hearts? You, Sir, I entertain for one of my hundred; only, I do not like the fashion of your garments. You will fay, they are Perfian; but let them be chang'd. Re-enter Glo'fter. Kent. Now, good my lord, lye here and reft a while. Lear. Make no noise, make no noise, draw the curtains ; So, fo, we'll go to fupper i'th' morning. Fool. And I'll go to bed at noon. Glo. Come hither, friend; where is the King, my mafter? Kent. Here, Sir, but trouble him not; his wits are gone. Glo. Good friend, I pr'ythee, take him in thy arms: I have o'er-heard a plot of death upon him: There is a litter ready, lay him in't, And drive tow❜rd Dover, friend, where thou fhalt meet With thine, and all that offer to defend him, Stand in affured lofs. Take up, take up, And follow me, that will to fome provifion Kent. Oppreft Nature fleeps: (17) This Reft might yet have balm'd thy broken Senfes, Stand in hard Cure. Come, help to bear thy Master; (17) oppreft Nature fleeps: Thefe two concluding Speeches by Kent and Edgar, and which by no means ought to have been cut off, I have restored from the Old Quarto. The Soliloquy of Edgar is extreamly fine; and the Sentiments of it are drawn equally from Nature and the Subject. Besides, with Regard to the Stage it is abfolutely neceffary: For as Edgar is not defign'd, in the Conftitution of the Play, to attend the King to Dover; how abfurd would it look for a Character of his Importance to quit the Scene without one Word faid, or the leaft Intimation what we are to expect from him ? Thou |