My train are men of choice and rarest parts, That all particulars of duty know: And in the most exact regard support 'Tis politic and safe to let him keep At point, a hundred knights! Yes, that on Each buz, each fancy, each complaint, dislike, The worships of their name.-O most small And hold our lives in mercy.-Oswald, I say!— fault, nature How ugly didst thou in Cordelia show! [Striking his Head. And thy dear judgment out! Go, go, my people. Alb. My lord, I am guiltless, as I am igno- Dear goddess, bear! Suspend thy purpose, if Dry up in her the organs of increase; {Exit. Alb. Now, gods that we adore, whereof comes this? Gon. Never afflict yourself to know the cause; But let his disposition have that scope That dotage gives it. Re-enter LEAR. Alb. Well, you may fear too far. Let me still take away the harms I fear, Enter STEWARD. What, have you writ that letter to my sister! Gon. Take you some company, and away to Inform her full of my particular fear; This milky gentleness, and course of your's, Alb. How far your eyes may pierce, I call- Striving to better, oft we mar what's well. Alb. Well, wel!; the event. [Exeunt. SCENE V.-Court before the same. Enter LEAR, KENT, and FOOL. Lear. Go you before to Gloster with these letters: acquaint my daughter no further with any thing you know, than comes from her demand out of the letter: If your diligence be not speedy, Lear. What, fifty of my followers, at a clap! I shall be there before you. Within a fortnight? Alb. What's the matter, Sir? Lear. I'll tell thee;-Life and death! I am asham'd That thou hast power to shake my manhood Should make thee worth them.-Blasts and fogs The untented woundings of a father's curse I have cast off for ever; thou shalt, I warrant [Exeunt LEAR, KENT, and Attendants. Gon. Do you mark that, my lord? Alb. I cannot be so partial, Goneril, To the great love I bear you,Gon. Pray yon, content.-What, Oswald, ho! You, Sir, more knave than fool, after your [To the FooL. Fool. Nuncle Lear, nuncle Lear, tarry, and take the fool with thee. master. Kent. I will not sleep, my lord, till I have delivered your letter. {Exit. Fool. If a man's brains were in his heels, wer't not in danger of kibes? Lear. Ay, boy. Fool. Then I pr'ythee, be merry; thy wit shall not go slip-shod. Lear. Ha, ha, ha! Fool. Shalt see, thy other daughter will use thee kindly for though she's as fike this as a crab is like an apple, yet I can tell what i can tell. Lear. Why, what canst thou tell, my boy! Fool. She will taste as like this, as a crab does to a crab. Thou canst tell, why one's nose stands i'the middle of his face ? Lear. No. Fool. Why, to keep his eyes on either side his nose; that what a man cannot smell out, he may spy into. Lear. I did her wrong: Fool. Caust tell how an oyster makes his shell? Lear. No. Fool. Nor 1 neither; but I can tell why a snail bas a house. Lear. Why? Fool. Why, to put his head in; not to give it away to his daughters, and leave his horns without a case. Lear, I will forget my nature.-So kind a father-Be my horses ready? Fool. Thy asses are gone about 'em. The • Armed. 1 Liable to reprehension. Scene I. reason why the seven stars are no seven, is a pretty reason. KING LEAR. more than Lear. Because they are not eight? Fool. Yes, indeed: Thou wouldst make a good fool. Lear. To take it again perforce!-Monster ingratitude! Fool. If thou wert my fool, nuncle, I'd have thee beaten for being old before thy time. Lear. How's that? Fool. Thou shouldst not have been old, before thou hadst been wise. Lear. O let me not be mad, not mad, sweet heaven! Keep me in temper; I would not be mad! Enter GENTLEMAN. How now ! Are the horses ready? Gent. Ready, my lord. Lear. Come, boy. Fool. She that is maid now, and laughs at my departure, Shall not be a maid long, unless things be cut [Exeunt. shorter. ACT 11. drunkards Do more than this in sport.-Father! father ! Enter GLOSTER, and Servants with Torches. Edm. Here stood he in the dark, his sharp Mumbling of wicked charms, conjuring the moon To stand his auspicious mistress :- Edm. Look, Sir, I bleed. Glo. Where is the villain, Edmund ? Edm. Fled this way, Sir. When by no means he could Glo. Pursue him, ho!-Go after.-[Exit Servant. By no means,-what? Edm. Persuade me to the murder of your But that I told him, the revenging gods fine, Seeing how loathly opposite I stood To his unnatural purpose, in fell motion, SCENE I-A Court within the Castle of the My unprovided body, lanc'd mine arm : Earl of GLOSTER. Enter EDMUND and CURAN, meeting. Edm. Save thee, Curan. Cur. And you, Sir. I have been with your father; and given him notice, that the duke of Cornwall, and Regan his duchess, will be here with him to-night. Edm. How comes that? Cur. Nay, I know not: You have heard of the news abroad: I mean, the whispered ones, for they are yet but ear-kissing arguments? Edm. Not I: 'Pray you, what are they? Cur. Have you heard of no likely wars toward, 'twixt the dukes of Cornwall and Albany? Edm. Not a word. Cur. You may then, in time. Fare you well, This weaves itself perforce into my business! work! Brother, a word; descend :-Brother, I say; Enter EDGAR. My father watches :-O Sir, fly this place; Have you not spoken 'gainst the duke of Corn- He's coming hither; now, i'the night, 'the And Regan with him; Have you nothing said Edg. I am sure on't, not a word. me. La cunning, I must draw my sword upon you:Draw: Seem to defend yourself: Now quit you well. Yield:-come before my father;-Light, ho, bere! Fly, brother ;-Torches ! torches!-So, fare- But when he saw my best alarum'd spirits, Or whether gasted by the noise I made, Glo. Let him fly far: Not in this land shall he remain uncaught; master, My worthy arch and patron, comes to-night: Bringing the murd'rous coward to the stake; Edm. When I dissuaded him from his intent, And found him pight to do it, with curst speech I threaten'd to discover him: He replied, Of any trust, virtue, or worth, in thee (As this I would; ay, though thou didst pro- My very character ) I'd turn it all I will send far and near, that all the kingdom Enter CORNWALL, REGAN, and Attendants. (Which I can call but now,) I have heard strange | news, Reg. If it be true, all vengeance comes too short, Which can pursue the offender. How dost, my lord? Kent. Fellow, I know thee. Stew. What dost thou know me for? Kent. A knave, a rascal, an eater of broken meats; a base, proud, shallow, beggarly, threesuited, hundred-pound, filthy worsted-stocking knave; a lily-liver'd, action-taking knave; a whoreson, glass-gazing, superserviceable, 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, begHe whom my father nam'd? your Edgar? gar, coward, pandar, and the son and heir of a Glo. O lady, lady, shame would have it hid!mongrel bitch: one whom I will beat into claReg. Was he not companion with the riotous Glo. O madam, my old heart is crack'd, is crack'd! Reg. What, did my father's godson seek your life? knights That tend upon my father? Glo. I know not, madam: It is too bad, too bad. Edm. Yes, madam, he was. Reg. No marvel then, though he were ill affected; morous whining, if thou deny'st the least syllabic of thy addition. Stew. Why, what a monstrous fellow art thon, 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 know'st me! Is it two days age, since I tripp'd up thy heels, and beat thee, before the king? Draw, you rogue; for, though it be night, the moon shines; I'll make a sop i'the moorshine of you: Draw, you whorson cullionly cau-barber-monger, draw. 'Tis they have put him on the old man's death, That, if they come to sojourn at my house, Corn. Nor I, assure thee, Regan. [Drawing his Sword. Stew. Away; I have nothing to do with thee. Kent. Draw, you rascal: you come with letters against the king and take vanity the Edmund, I hear that you have shown your fa-puppet's part, against the royalty of her fa ther A child-like office. Edm. 'Twas my duty, Sir. Glo. He did bewray his practice; and re- This hurt you see, striving to apprehend him. Glo. Ay, my good lord, he is. Corn. If he be taken, he shall never more Be fear'd of doing harm: make your own pur. pose, How in my strength you please.-For you, Ed- Whose virtue and obedience doth this instant Edm. I shall serve you, Sir, Truly, however else. Glo. For him I thank your grace. Corn. You know not why we came to visit ther: Draw, you rogue, or I'll so carbonado your shanks :-draw, you rascal; come your ways. Stew. Help, ho! murder! help! Kent. Strike, you slave; stand, rogue, stand; you neat slave, strike. [Beating him. Stew. Help, ho! murder! murder! Enter EDMUND, CORNWALL, REGAN, GLOSTER, and Servants. Edm. How now? What's the matter? Part. Kent. With you, goodman boy, 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; ter ? 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 in thee; a tailor made thee. Corn. Thou art a strange fellow: a tailor make a man? Kent. Ay, a tailor, Sir; a stone-cutter or a painter could not have made him so ill, though they had been but two hours at the trade. Corn. Speak yet, how grew your quarrel! At suit of his grey bread,- You beastly knave, know you no reverence? Kent. That such a slave as this should wear a Kent. No contraries hold more antipathy, Than I and such a knave. Cera. Why dost thou call him knave? What's bis offence ? Kent. His countenance likes me not. § Kent. Sir, 'tis my occupation to be plain; [affect An honest mind and plain, he must speak truth: And they will take it, so; if not, he's plain. Harbour more craft, and more corrupter ends, Kent. Sir, in good sooth, in sincere verity, Our sister speaks of :-Come, bring away the stocks. Glo. Let me beseech your grace not to do so: Is such, as basest and contemned'st wretches, Corn. I'll answer that. Reg. My sister may receive it much more worse, To have her gentleman abus'd, assaulted, Come, my good lord; away. [Exeunt REGAN and CORNWALL. Whose disposition, all the world well knows, thee. Kent. Pray, do not, Sir: I have watch'd, and Some time I shall sleep out, the rest I'll whistle. Glo. The duke's to blame in this; 'twill be ill taken. Kent. Good king, that must approve the com- Thou out of heaven's benediction com'st ; Approach, thou beacon to this under globe, That by thy comfortable beams I may Peruse this letter !-Nothing almost seems miracles, Corn. What mean'st by this? Kent. To go out of my dialect, which you dis- But misery-I know 'tis from Cordelia commend so much. I know, Sir, I am no flat-who hath most fortunately been inform'd terer: he that beguiled you in a plain accent, of my obscured course; and shall find time was a plain knave; which, for my part, I will From this enormous state,-seeking to give Losses their remedies :-All weary and o'ernot be, though I should win your displeasure to watch'd, entreat me to it. Corn. What was the offence you gave him? It pleas'd the king his master, very late, sure, Tripp'd me behind; being down, insulted, rail'd, Kent. None of these rogues, and cowards, Corn. Fetch forth the stocks, ho! Take vantage, heavy eyes, not to behold Fortune, good night: smile once more; turn thy SCENE III.-A part of the Heath. Edg. I heard myself proclaim'd; [gart, Kent. Sir, I am too old to learn: Cora. Fetch forth the stocks: As I've life and honour, there shall he sit till noon. Reg. Till noon! till night, my lord; and all Kent. Why, madam, if I were your father's You should not use me so. Blanket my loins; elf all my hair in knots; And with this horrible object, from low farms, Enforce their charity,-Poor Turlygood! poor That's something yet :-Edgar I nothing am. cries: How chance the king comes with so small a train? Fool. An thou hadst been set i'the stocks for that question, thou hadst well deserv'd it. Kent. Why, fool? Fool. We'll set thee to school to an ant, to teach thee there's no labouring in the winter. All that follow their noses are led by their eyes, but blind men; and there's not a nose among twenty, but can smell him that's stinking. Let go thy hold when a great wheel runs down a hill, lest it break thy neck with following it; but the great one that goes up the bill, let him draw thee after. When a wise man gives thee better counsel, give me mine again: I would have none but knaves follow it, since a fool gives it. That, Sir, which serves and seeks for gain, Will pack, when it begins to raiu, The knave turns fool, that runs away; Kent. Where learned you this, fool? Re-enter LEAR, with GLOSter. Lear. Deny to speak with me? They are sick? they are weary ? They have travell'd hard to-night? The images of revolt and flying off! Glo. My dear lord, You know the fiery quality of the dake; Mere Lear. Vengeance! plague! death! confu sion! Fiery? what quality? Why Gloster, Gloster, I'd speak with the duke of Cornwall, and bis wife. Glo. Well, my good lord, I have inform'd them so. Lear. Inform'd them! Dost thon understand me, man? Glo. Ay, my good lord. Lear. The king would speak with Cornwall; the dear father Would with his daughter speak, commands her service: Are they inform'd of this?-My breath and blood! Fiery? the fiery duke ?-Tell the hot duke, that Your son and daughter found this trespass No, but not yet:-may be, he is not well: worth Infirmity doth still neglect all oflice, selves, [mind When nature, being oppress'd, commands the them, Now, presently: bid them come forth and (Exit. Glo. I'd have all well betwixt you. but, down. Fool. Cry to it, nuncle, as the cockney did to the eels, when she put them i'the paste? Removing from their own house. ↑ Artifice. |