King. Why, yet he doth deny his prisoners, But with proviso and exception,3

That we at our own charge shall ransom straight
His brother-in-law, the foolish Mortimer; so
Who, on my soul, hath wilfully betray'd
The lives of those that he did lead to fight
Against the great magician, damn'd Glendower,
Whose daughter, as we hear, the Earl of March
Hath lately married. Shall our coffers, then,
Be emptied to redeem a traitor home?
Shall we buy treason? and indent1 with fears,
When they have lost and forfeited themselves?
No, on the barren mountains let him starve;
For I shall never hold that man my friend 90
Whose tongue shall ask me for one penny cost
To ransom home revolted Mortimer.

Hot. Revolted Mortimer!

He never did fall off, my sovereign liege,
But by the chance of war; to prove that true
Needs no more but one tongue for all those
wounds,

99

Those mouthed wounds, which valiantly he took,
When on the gentle Severn's sedgy bank,
In single opposition, hand to hand,
He did confound the best part of an hour
In changing hardiment with great Glendower.
Three times they breath'd,' and three times
did they drink,

Upon agreement, of swift Severn's flood;
Who then, affrighted with their bloody looks,
Ran fearfully among the trembling reeds,
And hid his crisps head in the hollow bank
Blood-stained with these valiant combatants.
Never did base and rotten policy

Colour her working with such deadly wounds;

Or you shall hear in such a kind from me As will displease you.-My Lord Northumberland,

We license your departure with your son.— [Going. Send us your prisoners, or you will hear of it. [Flourish of trumpets. Exeunt all but Northumberland and Hotspur.

Hot. An if the devil come and roar for them, I will not send them.-I will after straight And tell him so; for I will ease my heart, Although it be with hazard of my head. [Going. North. What, drunk with choler? Stay and pause awhile.Here comes your uncle.

Re-enter WORCESTER.

129

Hot.
Speak of Mortimer!
Zounds, I will speak of him; and let my soul
Want mercy, if I do not join with him:
Yea, on his part I'll empty all these veins,
And shed my dear blood drop by drop in the
dust

But I will lift the down-trod Mortimer
As high in the air as this unthankful king,
As this ingrate and canker'd' Bolingbroke.
North. [To Worcester] Brother, the king hath
made your nephew mad.

Wor. Who struck this heat up after I was gone?
Hot. He will, forsooth, have all my pris-

161

171

North. He did; myself did hear it. Hot. Nay, then I cannot blame his cousin king, That wish'd him on the barren mountains starve. But shall it be, that you, that set the crown Upon the head of this forgetful man [And for his sake wear the detested blot Of murtherous subornation,1 shall it be, That you a world of curses undergo, Being the agents, or base second means, The cords, the ladder, or the hangman rather? O, pardon me that I descend so low, To show the line and the predicament Wherein you range under this subtle king!] Shall it for shame be spoken in these days, Or fill up chronicles in time to come, That men of your nobility and power Did gage them both in an unjust behalf, As both of you-God pardon it!-have done, To put down Richard, that sweet lovely rose, And plant this thorn, this canker, Bolingbroke? And shall it in more shame be further spoken, That you are fool'd, discarded, and shook off By him for whom these shames ye underwent? No; yet time serves wherein you may redeem Your banish'd honours and restore yourselves Into the good thoughts of the world again, [Revenge the jeering and disdain'd3 contempt Of this proud king, who studies day and night To answer all the debt he owes to you Even with the bloody payment of your deaths.] Therefore, I say,

1 Of murtherous subornation, of procuring murder. a Canker, dog-rose. 3 Disdain'd, disdainful.

Wor.

190

Peace, cousin, say no more. And now I will unclasp a secret book, And to your quick-conceiving discontents I'll read you matter deep and dangerous As full of peril and adventurous spirit As to o'er-walk a current roaring loud On the unsteadfast footing of a spear.

Hot. If he fall in, good night! or sink or swim: Send danger from the east unto the west, So honour cross it from the north to south, And let them grapple; O, the blood more stirs To rouse a lion than to start a hare!

198

Hot.

I'll keep them all. By God, he shall not have a Scot of them; No, if a Scot would save his soul, he shall not. I'll keep them, by this hand.

Wor. You start away And lend no ear unto my purposes. Those prisoners you shall keep. Hot. Nay, I will; that's flat. He said he would not ransom Mortimer, Forbade my tongue to speak of Mortimer; 220 But I will find him when he lies asleep, And in his ear I'll holla "Mortimer!" Nay,

I'll have a starling shall be taught to speak Nothing but "Mortimer," and give it him, To keep his anger still in motion.

4 Quick-conceiving, prompt to perceive. 5 Corrival, rival, competitor.

6 Figures, fancies.

7 Cry you mercy, beg your pardon.

Hot. You say true.

Why, what a candy deal of courtesy

250

This fawning greyhound then did proffer me! Look, "when his infant fortune came to age❞—

And-"gentle Harry Percy"—and “kind cousin,"

O, the devil take such cozeners!-God forgive me!

Good uncle, tell your tale, for I have done.
Wor. Nay, if you have not, to it again;
We will stay your leisure.

Hot.
I have done, i' faith.
Wor. Then once more to your Scottish
prisoners.

Deliver them up without their ransom

straight,

260

And make the Douglas' son your only mean For powers in Scotland; which, for divers

reasons

1 Sword-and-buckler, low-lived. 2 Wasp-stung, irritable.

4 Deliver them up, set them free. 5 Powers, forces, troops.

And then the power of Scotland and of York,To join with Mortimer, ha?

Wor. And so they shall. Hot. In faith, it is exceedingly well aim'd. Wor. And 't is no little reason bids us speed, To save our heads by raising of a head;8 For, bear ourselves as even as we can, The king will always think him in our debt, And think we think ourselves unsatisfied, Till he hath found a time to pay us home: And see already how he doth begin To make us strangers to his looks of love. 290 Hot. He does, he does; we'll be reveng'd on him.

Wor. Cousin, farewell.-No further go in this Than I by letters shall direct your course. [When time is ripe,-which will be suddenly,— I'll steal to Glendower and Lord Mortimer; Where you and Douglas and our powers at once, As I will fashion it, shall happily meet, To bear our fortunes in our own strong arms, Which now we hold at much uncertainty.] North. Farewell, good brother; we shall thrive, I trust.

300

Hot. Uncle, adieu; O, let the hours be short Till fields and blows and groans applaud our sport!

In estimation, as a matter of opinion.
Lett'st slip, dost let the hounds loose.

3 Kept, resided.

• Head, army.

[Exeunt.

• Even, discreetly.

Sec. Car. Peas and beans are as dank here as a dog, and that is the next way to give poor jades the bots; this house is turn'd upside down since Robin ostler died.

First Car. Poor fellow! never joy'd since the price of oats rose; it was the death of him.

Sec. Car. I think this be the most villanous house in all London road for fleas; I am stung like a tench.

First Car. Like a tench! by the mass, there is ne'er a king christen could be better bit than I have been since the first cock.

20

Sec. Car. Why, they will allow us ne'er a jordan, and then we leak in the chimney; and your chamber-lie breeds fleas like a loach.

First Car. What, ostler! come away, and be hang'd! come away.

Sec. Car. I have a gammon of bacon and two razes of ginger, to be delivered as far as Charing-cross.

First Car. God's body! the turkeys in my pannier are quite starved.--What, ostler!-A plague on thee! hast thou never an eye in thy head? canst not hear? An 't were not as good deed as drink, to break the pate on thee, I

Enter GADSHILL.

Gads. Good morrow, carriers.

o'clock?

What's

First Car. I think it be two o'clock. Gads. I prithee, lend me thy lantern, to see my gelding in the stable.

First Car. Nay, soft, I pray ye; I know a trick worth two of that, i' faith.

Gads. I prithee, lend me thine.

41

Sec. Car. Ay, when? canst tell?-Lend me thy lantern, quoth a'?— marry, I'll see thee hang'd first.

Gads. Sirrah carrier, what time do you mean to come to London?

Sec. Car. Time enough to go to bed with a candle, I warrant thee.-Come, neighbour Mugs, we'll call up the gentlemen; they will along with company, for they have great charge. [Exeunt Carriers.

Cham. Good morrow, Master Gadshill. It holds current that I told you yesternight; there's a franklin8 in the wild of Kent hath brought three hundred marks with him in gold. I heard him tell it to one of his company last night at supper-a kind of auditor-one that hath abundance of charge too,-God knows what. They are up already, and call for eggs and butter; they will away presently. 66 Gads. Sirrah, if they meet not with Saint Nicholas' clerks, 10 I'll give thee this neck.

Cham. No, I'll none of it; I prithee, keep that for the hangman; for I know thou worshipp'st Saint Nicholas as truly as a man of falsehood may.

As fair as, as proper as to say.

8 Franklin, freeholder.

10 Saint Nicholas' clerks, robbers.

9 Wild, weald.