Bold, quick, ingenious, forward, capable; Cate. He for his father's sake so loves the prince, That he will not be won to aught against him. Buck. What think'st thou then of Stanley? will not he? Cate. He will do all in all as Hastings doth. And, as it were far off, sound thou lord Hastings, If thou dost find him tractable to us, His ancient knot of dangerous adversaries Cate. My good lords both, with all the heed I can. Glo. Shall we hear from you, Catesby, ere we sleep? Cate. You shall, my lord. Glo. At Crosby-place, there shall you find us both. [Exit Catesby. Buck. Now, my lord, what shall we do, if we perceive Lord Hastings will not yield to our complots? Glo. Chop off his head, man ;-somewhat we will do: And, look, when I am king, claim thou of me The earldom of Hereford, and all the moveables Whereof the king my brother was possess'd. Buck. I'll claim that promise at your grace's hand. Glo. And look to have it yielded with all kind ness. Come, let us sup betimes; that afterwards We may digest our complots in some form. [Exeunt. SCENE II.-Before Lord Hastings' house. Enter a Messenger. Mess. My lord, my lord,— Hast. Within.] Who knocks? Enter HASTINGS. Hast. Cannot thy master sleep the tedious nights? Mess. So it should seem by that I have to say. First, he commends him to your noble lordship. Hast. And then, Mess. And then he sends you word, he dreamt To-night the boar had rased off his helm: Besides, he says, there are two councils held; And that may be determin'd at the one, Which may make you and him to rue at th' other. Therefore he sends to know your lordship's pleasure, If presently you will take horse with him, And with all speed post with him toward the north, To shun the danger that his soul divines. Hast. Go, fellow, go, return unto thy lord; Bid him not fear the separated councils: His honour, and myself, are at the one; And, at the other, is my good friend Catesby; Where nothing can proceed, that toucheth us, Whereof I shall not have intelligence. Tell him, his fears are shallow, wanting instance: And for his dreams-I wonder, he's so fond To trust the mockery of unquiet slumbers: To fly the boar, before the boar pursues, Were to incense the boar to follow us, And make pursuit, where he did mean no chase. Go, bid thy master rise and come to me; And we will both together to the Tower, Where, he shall see, the boar will use us kindly. Mess. I'll go, my lord, and tell him what you say. Enter CATESBY. [Exit. Cate. Many good morrows to my noble lord! What news, what news, in this our tottering state? Hast. I'll have this crown of mine cut from Before I'll see the crown so foul misplac'd. Cate. Ay, on my life; and hopes to find you Upon his party, for the gain thereof : The kindred of the queen, must die at Pomfret, Hast. Indeed, I am no mourner for that news, Knocking. Because they have been still my adversaries; But, that I'll give my voice on Richard's side, Hast. But I shall laugh at this a twelvemonth hence, That they, who brought me in my master's hate, I live to look upon their tragedy. Well, Catesby, ere a fortnight make me older, With Rivers, Vaughan, Grey: and so 'twill do Come on, come on, where is your boar-spear, man? You may jest on, but, by the holy rood, Hast. My lord, I hold my life as dear as yours; Stan. The lords at Pomfret, when they rode from London, Were jocund, and suppos'd their states were sure, Hast. Come, come, have with you.-Wot you what, my lord? To-day, the lords you talk of are beheaded. Stan. They, for their truth, might better wear their heads, Than some, that have accus'd them, wear their hats. But come, my lord, let's away. Enter a Pursuivant. Pr. Well met, my lord; I am glad to see your honour. Hast. I thank thee, good sir John, with all my heart. I am in your debt for your last exercise ; Buck. What, talking with a priest, lord chamberlain ? Your friends at Pomfret, they do need the priest; Your honour hath no shriving work in hand. Hast. 'Good faith, and when I met this holy man, The men you talk of came into my mind. Buck. I do, my lord; but long I cannot stay there : I shall return before your lordship thence. Hast. Nay, like enough, for I stay dinner there. Buck. And supper too, although thou know'st it not. [Aside, Come, will you go? Hast. I'll wait upon your lordship. [Exeunt. SCENE III.-Pomfret. Before the Castle. Enter RATCLIFF, with a Guard, conducting R1VERS, GREY, and VAUGHAN, to execution. Rat. Come, bring forth the prisoners. Riv. Sir Richard Ratcliff, let me tell thee this,— To-day, shalt thou behold a subject die, For truth, for duty, and for loyalty. Grey. God keep the prince from all the pack of you! A knot you are of damned blood-suckers. Vaugh. You live, that shall cry woe for this hereafter. Rat. Despatch; the limit of your lives is out." Riv. O Pomfret, Pomfret! O thou bloody prison, Fatal and ominous to noble peers! Within the guilty closure of thy walls Richard the second here was hack'd to death: And, for more slander to thy dismal seat, We give thee up our guiltless blood to drink. Grey. Now Margaret's curse is fallen upon our heads, When she exclaim'd on Hastings, you, and I, Then curs'd she Richard :-O, remember, God, Farewell, until we meet again in heaven. [Exeunt. SCENE IV.-London. A room in the Tower. BUCKINGHAM, STANLEY, HASTINGS, the Bishop of ELY, CATESBY, LOVEL, and Others, sitting at a table: Officers of the Council attending. Hast. Now, noble peers, the cause why we are męt Is to determine of the coronation : Who is most inward with the noble duke? Buck. We know each other's faces for our hearts, He knows no more of mine, than I of yours; But, for his purpose in the coronation, I saw good strawberries in your garden there; you. [Exeunt Gloster and Buckingham. Stan. We have not yet set down this day of triumph. To-morrow, in my judgment, is too sudden; Re-enter Bishop of ELY. Ely. Where is my lord protector? I have sent For these strawberries. Hast. His grace looks cheerfully and smooth this morning; There's some conceit or other likes him well, Hast. Marry, that with no man here he is offended; For, were he, he had shown it in his looks. Re-enter GLOSTER and BUCKINGHAM. Glo. I pray you all, tell me what they deserve, That do conspire my death with devilish plots Of damned witchcraft; and that have prevail'd Upon my body with their hellish charms? Hast. The tender love I bear your grace, my lord, Makes me most forward in this noble presence Glo. Then be your eyes the witness of their evil, lord, Glo. If! thou protector of this damned strumpet, Talk'st thou to me of ifs ?-Thou art a traitor:Off with his head :-now, by Saint Paul I swear, I will not dine until I see the same.Lovel, and Catesby, look, that it be done; The rest, that love me, rise, and follow me. [Exeunt Council, with Gloster and Buckingham. Hast. Woe, woe, for England! not a whit for me; For I, too fond, might have prevented this: And startled, when he look'd upon the Tower, Make a short shrift, he longs to see your head. Hast. O momentary grace of mortal men, Which we more hunt for than the grace of God! Who builds his hope in air of your fair looks, Lives like a drunken sailor on a mast; Ready, with every nod, to tumble down Into the fatal bowels of the deep. Lov. Come, come, despatch; 'tis bootless to exclaim. Hast. O, bloody Richard !-miserable England! I prophesy the fearful'st time to thee, SCENE V.-The same. The Tower walls. Murder thy breath in middle of a word,- Glo. He is; and see, he brings the mayor along. Enter the Lord Mayor and CATESBY. Buck. Let me alone to entertain him.-Lord mayor, Glo. Look to the draw-bridge there. Glo. Catesby, o'erlook the walls. Buck. Lord Mayor, the reason we have sent for you, Glo. Look back, defend thee, here are enemies. Buck. God and our innocence defend and guard us! Enter LovEL and RATCLIFF, with HASTINGS's head. Glo. Be patient, they are friends; Ratcliff, and Lovel. Lov. Here is the head of that ignoble traitor, The dangerous and unsuspected Hastings. Glo. So dear I lov'd the man, that I must weep. I took him for the plainest harmless't creature, That breath'd upon the earth a Christian; Made him my book, wherein my soul recorded The history of all her secret thoughts: So smooth he daub'd his vice with show of virtue, That, his apparent open guilt omitted,I mean, his conversation with Shore's wife,He liv'd from all attainder of suspect. Buck. Well, well, he was the covert'st shel- That ever liv'd.-Look you, my lord mayor, Glo. What! think you weare Turks, or infidels? May. Now, fair befal you! he deserv'd his And your good graces both have well proceeded, Buck. Yet had we not determin'd he should die, As well as I had seen, and heard him speak: Glo. And to that end we wish'd your lordship To avoid the censures of the carping world. Buck. But since you came too late of our intent, Yet witness what you hear we did intend: And so, my good lord mayor, we bid farewell. [Exit Lord Mayor. Glo. Go, after, after, cousin Buckingham. The mayor towards Guildhall hies him in all post: There, at the meetest vantage of the time, And bestial appetite in change of lust; Even where his raging eye, or savage heart, As if the golden fee, for which I plead, Where you shall find me well accompanied, Meet me, within this hour, at Baynard's castle. SCENE VI.-A Street. Enter a Scrivener. SCENE VII.-The same. Court of Baynard's Castle. Enter GLOSTER and BUCKINGHAM, meeting. Glo. How now, how now? what say the citizens? Buck. Now by the holy mother of our Lord, The citizens are mum, say not a word. Glo. Touch'd you the bastardy of Edward's children? Buck. I did; with his contract with lady And his contract by deputy in France: I bade them, that did love their country's good, Buck. No, so God help me, they spake not a word; But, like dumb statues, or breathless stones, His answer was, the people were not us'd Scriv. Here is the indictment of the good lord And thus I took the vantage of those few, Hastings; Which in a set hand fairly is engross'd, Thanks, gentle citizens, and friends, quoth I; Glo. What tongueless blocks were they! Would they not speak? Will not the mayor then, and his brethren, come? Buck. The mayor is here at hand; intend |