daughter,

With others, whom the rigour of our state
Forc'd to cry out. Where I could not be honest,
I never yet was valiant: for this business,
It touches us as France invades our land,
Not bolds the king; with others, whom, I
fear,

Most just and heavy causes make oppose.t
Edm. Sir, you speak nobly.

Reg. Why is this reason'd?

Gon. Combine together 'gainst the enemy: For these domestic and particular broils Art not to question here.

Alb. Let us then determine

With the ancient of war on our proceedings. Edm. I shall attend you presently at your

tent.

Hear me one word.

Alb. I'll overtake you.-Speak.

[Exeunt EDMUND, REGAN, GONERIL, Offi

cers, Soldiers, and Attendants. Edg. Before you fight the battle, ope this letter.

If you have victory, let the trumpet sound

Alarum within.-Enter, with Drum and Colours, LEAR, CORDELIA, and their Forces; and Exeunt.

Enter EDGAR and GLOSTER.

SCENE III.-The British Camp near Dover. Enter, in Conquest, with Drum and Colours, EDMUND; LEAR and CORDELIA, as Prisoners; Officers, Soldiers, &c.

Edm. Some officers take them away: good Until their greater pleasures first be known guard;

That are to censuret them.

Cor. We are not the first, [worst. Who, with best meaning, have incurr'd the For thee, oppressed king, am I cast down;

seem,

I can produce a champion, that will prove
What is avouched there: If you miscarry,
Your business of the world hath so an end,
And machination ceases. Fortune love you!
Alb. Stay till I have read the letter.
Edg. I was forbid it.

When time shall serve, let but the herald cry,
And I'll appear again.
[Exit.
Alb. Why, fare thee well; I will o'erlook
thy paper.

Re-enter EDMUND.

Edm. The enemy's in view; draw up your powers. (forces Here is the guess of their true strength and By diligent discovery;-but your haste Is now urg'd on you.

Alb. We will greet the time.§ [Exit.
Edm. To both these sisters have I sworn my
Each jealous of the other, as the stung [love;
Are of the adder. Which of them shall I take?
Both? one? or neither? Neither can be enjoy'd,
If both remain alive: To take the widow,
Exasperates, makes mad her sister Goneril;
And hardly shall I carry out my side,||
Her husband being alive. Now then, we'll use
His countenance for the battle; which being
done,

Let her, who would be rid of him, devise
His speedy taking off. As for the mercy
Which he intends to Lear, and to Cordelia,-
The battle done, and they within our power,
Shall never see his pardon: for my state
Stands on me to defend, not to debate. [Exit.

frown.[sisters? Shall we not see these daughters, and these Lear. No, no, no, no! Come, let's away to

We two alone will sing like birds i'the cage: prison: When thou dost ask my blessing, I'll kneel And ask of thee forgiveness: So we'll live, down, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh

At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues Talk of court news; and we'll talk with them too,[out;Who loses, and who wins; who's in, who's And take upon us the mystery of things, As if we were God's spies: And we'll wear out, [ones,

In a wall'd prison, packs and sects of great That ebb and flow by the moon.

Edm. Take them away.

Lear. Upon such sacrifices, my Cordelia, The gods themselves throw incense. Have I caught thee?

He, that parts us, shall bring a brand from heaven,

[eyes;

And fire us hence, like foxes. Wipe thine
The goujeerst shall devour them, flesh and fell,
Ere they shall make us weep: we'll see them
starve first.

Come. [Exeunt LEAR and CORDELIA, guarded.
Edm. Come hither, captain; hark.
Take thou this note; [Giving a Paper.] go, fol-
low them to prison:

One step I have advanc'd thee; if thou dost
As this instructs thee, thou dost make thy way
To noble fortunes: Know thou this,-that men
Are as the time is: to be tender-minded

* I. c. To be ready prepared, is all. + Pass judgement on them.

1 The French disease.

↑ Skin.

Edm. About it; and write happy, when thou hast done.

Mark,-1 say, instantly; and carry it so,
As I have set it down.

Of. I cannot draw a cart, nor eat dried oats; If it be man's work, I will do it.

[Exit OFFICER. Flourish. Enter ALBANY, GONERIL, REGAN,

OFFICERS, and Attendants.

Alb. Sir, you have shown to-day your valiant strain, [tives And fortune led you well: You have the capWho were the opposites of this day's strife: We do require them of you; so to use them, As we shall find their merits and our safety May equally determine.

Edm. Sir, I thought it fit

To send the old and miserable king
To some retention, and appointed guard;
Whose age has charms in it, whose title more,
To pluck the common bosom on his side,
And turn our impress'd lances in our eyes
Which do command them. With him I sent
the queen;

My reason all the same; and they are ready
To-morrow, or at further space, to appear
Where you shall hold your session. At this
time,

[friend; We sweat, and bleed: the friend hath lost his And the best quarrels, in the heat, are curs'd By those that feel their sharpness:The question of Cordelia, and her father, Requires a fitter place.t

Alb. Sir, by your patience,

I hold you but a subject of this war,
Not as a brother.

Reg. That's as we list to grace him. Methinks, our pleasure might have been demanded,

Ere you had spoke so far. He led our powers; Bore the commission of my place and person; The which immediacyt may well stand up, And call itself your brother.

Gon. Not so hot:

Reg. Let the drum strike, and prove my title thine. [To EDMUND.

Alb. Stay yet; hear reason:-Edmund, I' arrest thee

On capital treason; and, in thy arrest,
This gilded serpent: [Pointing to GoN.]—for
your claim, fair sister,

I bar it in the interest of my wife;
'Tis she is sub-contracted to this lord,
And I, her husband, contradict your bans.
If you will marry, make your love to me,
My lady is bespoke.

Gon. An interlude!

[Trumpet answers within.

Enter EDGAR, armed, preceded by a Trumpet. Alb. Ask him his purposes, why he appears Upon this call o'the trumpet.

Her. What are you?

Your name, your quality? and why you answer This present summons?

Edg. Know, my name is lost; By treason's tooth bare-gnawn, and cankerYet am I noble, as the adversary [bit: I come to cope withal.

Alb. Which is that adversary? Edg. What's he, that speaks for Edmund earl of Gloster?

Edm. Himself;-What say'st thou to him?
Edg. Draw thy sword;

That, if my speech offend a noble heart,
Thy arm may do thee justice: here is mine.
Behold, it is the privilege of mine honours,
My oath and my profession: I protest,-

1. e. Valour.

874

nence,

Despite thy victor sword, and fire-new fortune,
Thy valour, and thy heart,-thou art a traitor:
False to thy gods, thy brother, and thy father;
Conspirant 'gainst this high illustrious prince;
And, from the extremest upward of thy head,
To the descent and dust beneath thy feet,
A most toad-spotted traitor. Say thou, No,
This sword, this arm, and my best spirits, are
bent

To prove upon thy heart, whereto I speak
Thou liest.

Edm. In wisdom, I should ask thy name;t But, since thy outside looks so fair and warlike, [breathes, And that thy tongue some 'say of breeding What safe and nicely I might well delay By rule of knighthood, I disdain and spurn: Back do I toss these treasons to thy head; With the hell-hated lie o'erwhelm thy heart; Which, (for they yet glance by, and scarcely bruise,) [way, This sword of mine shall give them instant Where they shall rest for ever.-Trumpets, speak.

[Alarums.-They fight.-EDMUND falls. save him, save him!

Alb. Gon. This is mere practice, Gloster: By the law of arms, thou wast not bound to

answer

An unknown opposite; thou art not vanBut cozen'd and beguil'd. [quish'd,

Alb. Shut your mouth, dame, Or with this paper shall I stop it:-Hold, Sir:Thou worse than any name, read thine own evil :

No tearing, lady; I perceive, you know it. [Gives the Letter to EDMUND. Gon. Say, if I do; the laws are mine, not Who shall arraign me for't? [thine:

Alb. Most monstrous! Know'st thou this paper?

Gon. Ask me not what I know.

[Exit GONERIL. Alb. Go after her: she's desperate; govern her. [To an OFFICER, who goes out. Edm. What you have charg'd me with, that have I done; [out; And more, much more: the time will bring it "Tis past, and so am I: But what art thou, That hast this fortune on me? If thou art noble, I do forgive thee.

Edg. Let's exchange charity.

I am no less in blood than thou art, Edmund;
If more, the more thou hast wrong'd me.
My name is Edgar, and thy father's son.
The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices
Make instruments to scourge us:

The dark and vicious place where thee he got,
Cost him his eyes.

Edm. Thou hast spoken right, 'tis true; The wheel is come full circle; I am here. Alb. Methought, thy very gait did prophesy A royal nobleness:-I must embrace thee; Let sorrow split my heart, if ever I Did hate thee, or thy father!

Edg. Worthy prince,

I know it well.

Alb. Where have you hid yourself? [ther?

ness!

That with the pain of death we'd hourly die,
Rather than die at once!) taught me to shift
Into a madman's rags; to assume a sem-
blance

That very dogs disdain'd: and in this habit
Met I my father with his bleeding rings,
Their precious stones new lost; became his
guide,
[despair;
Led him, begg'd for him, sav'd him from
Never (O fault!) reveal'd myself unto him,
Until some half hour past, when I was arm'd,
Not sure, though hoping, of this good success,
I ask'd his blessing, and from first to last
Told him my pilgrimage: But his flaw'd
heart,

(Alack, too weak the conflict to support!) Twixt two extremes of passion, joy and grief, Burst smilingly.

Edm. This speech of yours hath mov'd me, And shall, perchance, do good: but speak

you on;

You look as you had something more to say. Alb. If there be more, more woeful, hold it For I am almost ready to dissolve, [in; Hearing of this.

Edg. This would have seem'd a period To such as love not sorrow; but another, To amplify too much, would make much more, And top extremity. [man, Whilst I was big in clamour, came there a Who having seen me in my worst estate, Shunn'd my abhorr'd society; but then, finding Who 'twas that so endur'd, with his strong

arms

He fasten'd on my neck, and bellow'd out As he'd burst heaven; threw him on my father;

Told the most piteous tale of Lear and him, That ever ear receiv'd: which in recounting His grief grew puissant, and the strings of life Began to crack: Twice then the trumpet sounded,

And there I left him tranc'd.

Alb. But who was this?

Edg. Kent, Sir, the banish'd Kent; who in disguise Follow'd his enemy king, and did him service Improper for a slave.

Enter a GENTLEMAN hastily, with a bloody
Knife.

Gent. Help! help! O help!
Edg. What kind of help?

Alb. Speak, man.

Edg. What means that bloody knife? Gent. 'Tis hot, it smokes ;

It came even from the heart of

Alb. Who, man? speak.

Gent. Your lady, Sir, your lady: and her

By her is poison'd; she confesses it.

[sister

Edm. I was contracted to them both; all

Now marry in an instant.

[three

Alb. Produce their bodies, be they alive or

dead!

This judgement of the heavens, that makes us tremble,

Edg. By nursing them, my lord.-List|| a brief

tale;

Enter KENT.

Edg. Here comes Kent, Sir.

Alb. O! it is he.

The time will not allow the compliment,

Which very manners urges.

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life; Whose misadventur'd piteous overthrows Do, with their death, bury their parents' strife.

The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love, And the continuance of their parents' rage, Which, but their children's end, nought could

remove,

Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage; The which if you with patient ears attend What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

Sam. A dog of that house shall move me to stand: I will take the wall of any man or maid

of Montague's.

Gre. That shows thee a weak slave; for the weakest goes to the wall.

Sam. True; and therefore women, being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall:therefore I will push Montague's men from the wall, and thrust his maids to the wall.

Gre. The quarrel is between our masters, and us their men.

Sam. "Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant: when I have fought with the men, I will be cruel with the maids; I will cut off their heads.

Gre. The heads of the maids?

Sam. Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads; take it in what sense thou wilt. Gre. They must take it in sense, that feel

it.

Sam. Me they shall feel, while I am able to stand: and, 'tis known, I am a pretty piece of flesh.

Gre. 'Tis well, thou art not fish; if thou hadst, thou hadst been poor John. Draw thy tool; here comes two of the house of the Montagues.t

Poor John is hake, dried and salted.
+ The disregard of concurd is in character.