Anne. His better doth not breathe upon the earth. Glo. He lives that loves you better than he could. Anne. Name him.

Glo.

Anne.

Plantagenet.

Why, that was he.

Glo. The self-same name, but one of better nature.

Anne. Where is he?

Glo.

Here: [She spits at him.] Why

dost thou spit at me?

Anne. 'Would it were mortal poison, for thy sake! Glo. Never came poison from so sweet a place. Anne. Never hung poison on a fouler toad.

Out of my sight! thou dost infect mine eyes.

Glo. Thine eyes, sweet lady, have infected mine. Anne. Would they were basilisks, to strike thee dead!

Glo. I would they were, that I might die at once, For now they kill me with a living death.

Those eyes of thine from mine have drawn salt tears,
Sham'd their aspects with store of childish drops:
These eyes, which never shed remorseful tear;
No, when my father York, and Edward wept
To hear the piteous moan that Rutland made,
When black-fac'd Clifford shook his sword at him:
Nor when thy warlike father, like a child,
Told the sad story of my father's death,

And twenty times made pause to sob and weep,
That all the standers-by had wet their cheeks,
Like trees bedash'd with rain; in that sad time
My manly eyes did scorn an humble tear;

And what these sorrows could not thence exhale,
Thy beauty hath, and made them blind with weeping'.

6 He lives-] The quarto editions, to the injury of the regularity of the measure, insert "Go to" before "he lives."

7 Thy beauty hath, and made them blind with weeping.] This and the eleven preceding lines are not in any of the quarto impressions, not even in that of 1634, printed two years after the second folio. The differences between the quartos are seldom caused by anything but errors of the press.

I never sued to friend, nor enemy;

My tongue could never learn sweet smoothing word;
But now thy beauty is propos'd my fee,

My proud heart sues, and prompts my tongue to speak.
[She looks scornfully at him.
Teach not thy lip such scorn; for it was made
For kissing, lady, not for such contempt.
If thy revengeful heart cannot forgive,

Lo! here I lend thee this sharp-pointed sword;
Which if thou please to hide in this true breast,
And let the soul forth that adoreth thee,

I lay it naked to the deadly stroke,
And humbly beg the death upon my knee.

[He lays his Breast open: she offers at it with
his Sword.

Nay, do not pause; for I did kill king Henry ;—
But 'twas thy beauty that provoked me.

Nay, now despatch; 'twas I that stabb'd young Ed

ward;

But 'twas thy heavenly face that set me on3.

[She lets fall the Sword.

Take up the sword again, or take up me.

Anne. Arise, dissembler: though I wish thy death,

I will not be thy executioner.

Glo. Then bid me kill myself, and I will do it.
Anne. I have already.

Glo.

That was in thy rage:

Speak it again, and even with the word,

This hand, which for thy love did kill thy love,
Shall for thy love kill a far truer love:

8 Sweet SMOOTHING WORD ;] In sc. 3, Gloster uses the verb to smooth. The quartos read, "sweet soothing words." In the next line but two, the quartos have lips for "lip," and four lines lower, bosom for "breast."

" But 'twas thy heavenly face that set me on.] This and the three preceding lines stand thus in all the quarto impressions :—

"Nay, do not pause; 'twas I that kill'd your husband,

But 'twas thy beauty that provoked me :

Nay, now dispatch; 'twas I that kill'd king Henry,

But 'twas thy heavenly face that set me on."

To both their deaths shalt thou be accessary.

Anne. I would, I knew thy heart.
Glo. "Tis figur'd in my tongue.
Anne. I fear me, both are false.
Glo. Then, never man was true.
Anne. Well, well, put up your sword.
Glo. Say, then, my peace is made.
Anne. That shalt thou know hereafter.
Glo. But shall I live in hope?
Anne. All men, I hope, live so.
Glo. Vouchsafe to wear this ring.
Anne. To take, is not to give'.

[She puts on the ring. Glo. Look, how my ring encompasseth thy finger, Even so thy breast encloseth my poor heart; Wear both of them, for both of them are thine.

And if thy poor devoted servant may

But beg one favour at thy gracious hand,

Thou dost confirm his happiness for ever.
Anne. What is it?

Glo. That it may please you leave these sad designs
To him that hath most cause' to be a mourner,
And presently repair to Crosby-place3.
Where (after I have solemnly interr'd,
At Chertsey monastery, this noble king,
And wet his grave with my repentant tears),
I will with all expedient duty see you':

1 To take, is not to give.] This answer by lady Anne is from the quarto, 1597, followed by all the other reprints in the same form. In the folio, "Vouchsafe to wear this ring," by a blunder, is made part of what lady Anne says. In the next line, the quartos have "this ring," instead of "my ring." Lower down, the folio reads "servant," and the quartos suppliant. We, of course, adhere to the folio in all cases where the matter is indifferent. All the quartos, excepting the earliest, omit "devoted."

2 To him that hath MOST cause-] So the folio: the quartos, more.

3 — repair to Crosby-PLACE:] The folio has Crosby-house, but Richard himself in the folio afterwards calls it Crosby-place, and it is as well to be consistent. See sc. 3 of this Act.

♦ I will with all EXPEDIENT duty see you :] Another instance in which " expedient" is used by Shakespeare for expeditious. See Vol. iii. p. 46; Vol. iv. p. 19. 134.

For divers unknown reasons, I beseech you,
Grant me this boon.

Anne. With all my heart; and much it joys me too, To see you are become so penitent.—

Tressel, and Berkley, go along with me.

Glo. Bid me farewell.

Anne.

"Tis more than you deserve;

But since you teach me how to flatter you,

Imagine I have said farewell already.

[Exeunt Lady ANNE, TRESSEL, and BERKLEY.

Gent. Towards Chertsey, noble lord3?

Glo. No, to White-Friars; there attend my coming. [Exeunt the rest, with the Corse.

Was ever woman in this humour woo'd?

Was ever woman in this humour won?

I'll have her, but I will not keep her long.
What! I, that kill'd her husband, and his father,

To take her in her heart's extremest hate;

With curses in her mouth, tears in her eyes,

The bleeding witness of my hatred by,

Having God, her conscience, and these bars against me, And I no friends to back my suit withal',

But the plain devil, and dissembling looks,

And yet to win her, all the world to nothing! Ha!
Hath she forgot already that brave prince,

Edward, her lord, whom I, some three months since,
Stabb'd in my angry mood at Tewksbury?
A sweeter and a lovelier gentleman,-
Fram'd in the prodigality of nature,

Young, valiant, wise, and, no doubt, right royal,—
The spacious world cannot again afford:

5 Towards Chertsey, noble lord ?] Before this question, we have in the quartos, "Sirs, take up the corse," given to Gloster; and modern editors, perverting it to "Take up the corse, sirs," have inserted it as part of the text. We follow the reading of the folio.

The bleeding witness of my hatred by,] So the folio, and correctly: the quartos and modern editors have "her hatred;" but the corse of Henry VI. was "the bleeding witness" of Gloster's hatred.

7 And I NO FRIENDS to back my suit WITHAL,] The quartos read,

"And I nothing to back my suit at all."

And will she yet abase her eyes on me,

That cropp'd the golden prime of this sweet prince,
And made her widow to a woful bed?

On me, whose all not equals Edward's moiety?
On me, that halt, and am mis-shapen thus?
My dukedom to a beggarly denier',

I do mistake my person all this while:
Upon my life, she finds, although I cannot,
Myself to be a marvellous proper man.
I'll be at charges for a looking-glass;
And entertain a score or two of tailors,
To study fashions to adorn my body:
Since I am crept in favour with myself,
I will maintain it with some little cost.
But, first, I'll turn yon' fellow in his grave,
And then return lamenting to my love.-
Shine out, fair sun, till I have bought a glass,
That I may see my shadow as I pass.

[Exit.

SCENE III.

The Same. A Room in the Palace.

Enter Queen ELIZABETH, Lord RIVERS, and Lord GREY.

Riv. Have patience, madam: there's no doubt, his majesty

Will soon recover his accustom'd health.

Grey. In that you brook it ill, it makes him worse: Therefore, for God's sake, entertain good comfort, And cheer his grace with quick and merry words'.

8

9

ABASE her eyes-] So the folio: the quartos, debase.

- a beggarly DENIER,] A " denier," says Steevens, is the twelfth part of a French sous.

1 with quick and merry WORDS.] may be right; but all the quartos have

sense.

The folio has eyes for "words," which "words," which seems best to suit the

Modern editors have substituted "words" for eyes without any notice

that such was not the reading of the first folio.