1

Queen. To fave her life, I'll fay, he is not fobbed
K. Rich. Her life is fafeft only in her birth.?
Queen. And only in that fafety dy'd her brothers.
K. Rich. No, at their births good stars were opposite.
Queen No, to their lives bad friends were contrary.
K. Rich. All unavoided is the doom of deftiny.d
Queens Trues; when avoided grace makes destiny.
My babes were deftin'd to a fairer death, mot jor
If grace had bleft thee with a fairer life.mú baA
K. Rich. You fpeak, as if that I had slain my coufins?
Queen. Coufins, indeed; and by their uncle couzen'd
Of comfort, kingdom, kindred, freedom, life: bre
Whole bands foever lanc'd their tender hearts,
Thy head, all indirectly, gave direction. A 2
No doubt, the murd'rous knife was dull and blunt,
Till it was whetted on thy ftone-hand heart, AÄ
To revel in the intrails of my lambs. worl
But that ftill ufe of grief makes wild grief tame,
My tongue fhould to thy ears not name my boys,
Till that my nails were anchor'd in thine eyes
And I in fuch a defp'rate bay of death,
Like a poor bark, of tails and tackling reft, woun
Rufh all to pieces on thy rocky bofom.5/ to risq A
K. Rich Madam, fo thrive I in my enterprize, i
And dangerous fuccefs of bloody wars;
As I intend more good to you and yours,
Than ever you or yours by me were harm'd l

Queen. What good is cover'd with the face of heav'n,
To be discover'd, that can do me good ad bid, brA
K. Rich. Th'advancement of your children, gentle Lady.
Queen. Up to fome feaffold, there to lose their heads.
K. Rich. No, to the dignity and height of fortune,
The high imperial type of this earth's glory.

Queen Platter my forrows with report of it;/
Tell me, what ftate, what dignity, what honour,
Canft thou demife to any child of mine? ognia o i
K. Rich. Ev'n all I have; ay, and myself and all,
Will I withat endow a child of thine
So in the Lethe of thy angry foul

Thou drown the fad remembrance of thofe wrongs;

Which, thou fuppofeff, I have done to thed.

Queen. Becbrief, left that the procefs of thy kindnessLaft longer telling than thy kindness dob [daughter." SK Riche Then know, that from my foul i love thy

men. My daughter's mother thinks it with her soul.

K. Richb What do you think venu IA & A Queen That thou doft love my daughter, from thy foul. So, from thy foul's love, didst thou love her brothers And from my heart's love I do thank thee for it. *1 K. Rich. Be not fo hafty to confound my meaning; I mean, that with my foul I love thy daughter, And do intend to make her Queen of England. Queen. Say then, who doft thou mean fhall be her King? K. Rich. Ev'n he that makes her Queen, who elfe Queen! What, thou ! [fhould be ?: K. Rich. Even fo; how think you of ite Queen. How canft thou woo her?

K. Rich I would learn of you,

As one being beft acquainted with her humour.
Queen And wilt thou learn of me ?

K. Rich. With all my heart. era 201

Queen. Send to her, by the man that flew her brothers, A pair of bleeding hearts; thereon engraver No H Edward and York; then, haply, will the weep:/ Therefore prefent to her, as fometime Margree Did to thy father fteept in Rutland's blood,

1

A handkerchief, which, fay to her, did drain að l'
The purple tide from her fweet brothers bodies,
And bid her wipe her weeping eyes therewith. BoT
If this inducement move her not to love,

Send her a letter of thy noble deeds;

Tell her, thou mad'ft away her uncle Clarence,

Her uncle Rivers; ay, and for her fake,

Mad'ft quick conveyance with her good aunt Anne.
K. Rich. You mock me, Madam; this is not the way

To win your daughters

Queen! There's no other way, n'vi AÀ Unless thou could't put on famesotherape, law And not be Richard that hath done all this

K. Rich. Say, that I did all this for love of her

Queen.

Queen. Nay then, indeed, the cannot chufe but hate thee; Having bought love with fuch a bloody fpoil.svef K. Rich. Look, what is done, cannot be now amended;4 Men fhall deal unadvisedly sometimes,

Which after-hours give leisure to repent of..biod szel
If I did take the kingdom from your fons, 196 91604"
To make amends, I'll give it to your daughters mi 11 !
If I have kill'd the iffue of your womb,
To quicken your encrease I will beget

Mine iflue of your blood, upon your daughter:
A grandam's name is little lefs in love,
Than is the doting title of a mother;
They are as children but one step below,
Even of your metal, of your very blood:
Of all one pain, fave for a night of groans
Endur'd of her, for whom you bid like forrow.
Your children were vexation to your youth,
But mine fhall be a comfort to your age.
The lofs you have, is but a fon being King;.
And by that lofs your daughter is made Queen...
I cannot make you what amends I would,
Therefore accept such kindness as I can. i
Doret, your fon, that with a fearful foul
Leads difcontented steps in foreign foil,
This fair alliance quickly fhall call homes
To high promotions, and great dignity's st
The King, that calls your beauteous daughter wife,
Familiarly fhall call thy Dorfet brother:
Again fhall you be mother to a King;
And all the ruins of distressful times,d
Repair'd with double riches of content.w
What!, we have many goodly days to fee.

The liquid drops of tears, that you have shed, (22)

(22) The liquid drops of tears, that you have shed, Shail come again, transform'd to crient pearl, wad Advantaging their love with intereft,

*Shall

Oftentimes double gain of happiness.] The great improvement to the fense, which my eafy emendation makes here, will, I fatter myself, convince every judicious reader, of its being the renuine reading." Love and lone (which was the obfolete manner of spelling loan;) are

made

Shall come again, transform'd to orient pearl;
Advantaging their loan with intereft

Of ten times double gain of happiness.

Go then, my mother, to thy daughter go

Make bold her bafhful years with your experience w
Prepare her ears to hear a wooer's tale pidas pub 1 }]
Put in her tender heart th' afpiring flamen adser &T'
Of golden fov'reignty; acquaint the Princefs ved 1 +
With the sweet filent hours of marriage-joys.
And when this arm of mine hath chastised
The petty rebel, dull-brain'd Buckingham, -
Bound with triumphant garlands will I come,
And lead thy daughter to a conqueror's bed; 913
To whom I will retail my conqueft won,"

And the fhall be fole victrefs, Cafar's Cæfar

Queen. What were I beft to fay, her father's brothes,

Would be her Lord or fhall I fay, her uncle ?>
Or he that flew her brothers, and her uncles P
Under what title fhall I woo for thee,

That God, the law, my honour, and her love, vũ ng A Can make feem pleafing to her tender years

to ind> 1 K. Rich. Infer fair England's peace by this alliance. Queen. Which the thall purchafe with ftill-lafting war. K. Rich. Tell her, the King, that may command,

intreats Queen. That at her hands, which the King's King forbids. K. Rich Say, the fhall be a high and mighty Queen Queen. To wail the title, as her mother doth. as K. Rich. Say, I will love her everlastingly 3 Queen. But how long fhall that title, ever, aft bað K. Rich. Sweetly in force, unto her fair life's end. Queen But how long, fairly, fhall her sweet life last ? K. Rich. As long as heav'n and nature lengthen it.. Queen. As long as hell and Richard like of it. made out of one another, only by a letter turn'd upfide down. Often, times is a ftupid concretion of three words, from the indolence of the editors, which frangely flattens the fentence. My emendation gives this apt and caly fenfe. The tears, that you have lent to your amictions, fhall be turn'd into gems; and requite you, by way of intereft, with happiness twenty times as great as your forrows have

been.

K. Rich.

K. Rich. Say, I, her Sov'reign, am her fubje& nowt Queen. But the, your fubject, loaths fuch fou'reignty, K. Rich. Be eloquent in my behalf to her bids an Queen. An honeft tale speeds best, being plainly told. KRich. Then, in plain terms tell her my loving tale Queen. Plain and not honest, is too haría a tile blo K. Rich. Your reafons are too fhallow, and too quick Queen. Ono, my reafons are too deep and dead; whil Two deep and dead poor infants in their grave Harp on it ftill fhall I, till heart-ftrings break.vrit 06

K. Rich. Harp not on that string, Madam; that is past, Now by my George, my Garter, and my crownH Queen. Profan'd, difhonour'd, and the third usurp d K. Rich. I fwear.

Queen. By nothing, for this is no oath 90019 y T The George, profan'd, hath loft his holy honour mon I The Garter, blemish'd, pawn'd his knightly virtues: I The Crown, ufurp'd, difgrac'd his kingly glory, 191 al If fomething thou would't fwear to be believ'd,

Swear then by fomething, that thou haft not wrong'd. I
K. Rich. Now by the world.

Queen. 'Tis full of thy foul wrongs..
K. Rich. My father's death-

Queen. Thy life hath that dishonour'd.
K. Rich. Then by myself,

Queen. Thyfelf thyfelf mifufeft.

K. Rich. Why then, by heav'n

Queen. Heav'ns wrong is most of all:

>

If thou didst fear to break an oath with heav'nased BOA
The unity the King my husband made 1295) C
Thou hadst not broken, nor my brothers dy'd.A 2
If thou hadit fear'd to break an oath with heav'n,
Th' imperial metal, circling now thy

Had grac'd the tender temples of my child;

And both the Princes had been breathing here.
Which now, two tender bed fellows for duft,

Thy broken faith hath made a prey to worms. to 2979C
What canft thou fwear by now?wing at Med2-
K. Rich By time to come.

Queen. That thou haft wronged in the time o'erpaft,

For