* finical rogue; one-trunk-inheriting slave; one that wouldst be a bawd in way of good service; and art nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar, pander, and the son and heir of a mungril bitch; • one whom I will beat into P clamorous whining, if thou 9 deny'st the least syllable of thy addition.

Stew. Why, what a monstrous fellow art thou, thus to rail on one, that is neither known of thee, nor knows thee! Kent. What a brazen-fac'd varlet art thou, to deny thou knowest me! Is it two days ago, since I tript up thy heels, and beat thee before the king? Draw, you rogue; for, tho' it be night, yet the moon shines; I'll make a sop o'th' moonshine of you. Draw, you whoreson, cullionly barber[Drawing his fword.

monger, draw.

W

Stew. Away, I have nothing to do with thee. Kent. Draw, you rascal. * You come with letters againft the king; and take Vanity the puppet's part, against the royalty of her father. Draw, you rogue, or I'll so carbonado your shanks-Draw, you rafcal; come your ways.

Stew. Help, ho' murther! help!

Kent. Strike, you flave; stand, rogue, stand; you neat lave, strike.

Stew. Help, ho! y murther! murther!

[Beating him.

SCENE

VI.

Enter Edmund 2, Cornwall, Regan, Glo'ster, and fervants.

Edm. How now, what's the matter? Part

Kent. With you, goodman boy, b if you please; come

I'll flesh you; come on, young master.

Glo. Weapons? arms? what's the matter here?

Corn. Keep peace, upon your lives; he dies, that strikes again. What's the matter?

Reg. The messengers from our sister and the king.

Corn. What is your difference? speak.

Stew. I am scarce in breath, my lord.

Kent. No marvel, you have so bestirr'd your valour, you cowardly rascal. Nature disclaims all share in thee: a taylor made thee.

Corn. Thou art a strange fellow. A taylor make a man? Kent. d Ay, a taylor, fir; a stone-cutter, or a painter could not have made him so ill, tho' they had been but two hours g at the trade.

Corn. Speak you, how grew your quarrel?

Stew. This ancient ruffian, fir, whose life I have spar'd at fuit of his grey beard

2 The qu's read after Edmund, with his rapier drawn.

a The qu's omit part

The qu's read and for if.

• The qu's and fo's omit all share, these words are first supplied by R.

The fo's, R. P. and H. omit ay.

• The qu's read he for they.

f Fo's and R. read two years.

So the qu's; the rest o'th' trade.

All but P. and H. read yet for you.

E

Kent

li

1

!

Kent. Thou whorson zed! thou unnecessary letter! My lord, if you will give me leave, I will tread this unbolted vil lain into mortar, and daub the i wall of a jakes with him. Spare my grey beard? you wagtail!

Corn. Peace, * firrah!

You beaftly knave, I know you no reverence?

Kent. Yes, fir, but anger hath a priviledge.

Corn. Why art thou angry?

Kent. That fuch a flave as this should wear a sword,

in Who wears no honesty.

Such fmiling rogues as these,

Like rats, oft bite those

holy cords Pa-twain

9 Which are too intricates t'unloose; fmooth ev'ry passion

That in the "natures of their lords" rebel;

* Bring oil to y fire, fnow to their colder moods,

a Renege, affirm, and turn their halcyon beaks

i The qu's read walls.

The qu's read fir for firrah.

I The qu's read you have no reverence.

The qu's read that for who.

So the qu's and P.; the reft the for thefe.

• The qu's and P. omit holy.

P So the qu's, fo's, and R. P. alters this to in twain; followed by the reft.

So the qu's, fo's, and R. P. omits which are; followed by the rest.

For intricate the qu's read intrench; the fo's and R. intrince; H. intrin

fick; T. W. and J. intrinficate; intricate is P.'s conjecture.

$ The qu's read to into fe.

* So all before P. who alters it to fouth; followed by the rest.
So all before P.; he and all after naturc.

w So all before P.; he and all after rebels; but perhaps ev'ry paffion (ie, all the paffions) will admit of a plural verb, as well as a fingular.

* The fo's and R. read being for bring.

A

With ev'ry gale and vary of their masters,;"
Knowing nought, like dogs, but following,
A plague upon your epileptic vifage!
d Smile you my speeches, as I were a fool?
Goofe, if I had you upon Sarum-plain,
I'd f drive ye cackling home to & Camelot.
Corn. What art thou mad, old fellow?
Glo. How fell you out? fay that.

Kent. No contraries hold more antipathy,

Than I and such a knave.

1

Corn. Why doft thou call him knave? What's his of fence?

Kent. His countenance, likes me not.

Corn. No more, perchance, does mine, or his, or hers,

Kent. Sir, 'tis my occupation to be plain;

I have seen better faces in my time,

Thank stands on any shoulder that I fee

Before me at this instant.

Corn. This is fome fellow,

The ist f. reads gall for gale.

Before knowing P. inferts as; followed by the reft.,

1

The 1st q. reads fmoyle for fimile; the ad q. and three first fo's smoile,

• The 1st q. reads and for if.

f The qu's read fend for drive.

The qu's read Camulet.

In the parts of Somersetshire near Camelot there are many large moors uporn

which great numbers of geefe are bred, fo that many other places in England

are from thence fupplied with quills and feathers. H.

Camelot was the place where the Romances say Arthur kept his court in

the weft; so this alludes to some proverbial speech in those romances.

w

Who having been prais'd for bluntness, doth affect
A fawcym roughness; and constrains the garb,
Quite from his nature. He cannot flatter, he!
• An honest mind and plain, he must speak truth;
An they will take it, fo; if not, he's plain.
These kind of knaves I know, which in this plainness
Harbour more craft, and more corrupter ends,
Than twenty filky ducking observants,
That stretch their duties nicely.

Kent. Sir, in goods footh, or in fincere verity,
Under th' allowance of your "grand aspect,
Whose influence, like the wreath of radiant fire
On w flickering Phoebus' front-

Corn. What mean'st thou by this?

Kent. To go out of my dialect, which you discommend so much. I know, fir, I am no flatterer; he that beguil'd you in a plain accent was a plain knave; which for my part I will not be, though I should win your displeasure to entreat me to it.

Corn. y What was th' offence you gave him?
Stew. I never gave him any.

The qu's read ruffines.

So all before P.; he and all after can't.

• The qu's read he must speak plain, &c. P The qu's, fo's, and R. read and.

P. and H. read far for more.

* So M. and W.; the rest filly.

• So the qu's; all the rest faith for footh. * All but the qu's omit or.

The fo's and R. read great for grand.

w The fo's and R. read flicking.

* All but the qu's omit thou.

Y The qu's read what's th' offence, &c.
H. reads never any, &c.