To pluck bright honour from the pale-fac'd Moon;
Or dive into the bottom of the Deep,

Where fathom-line could never touch the ground,
And pluck up drowned Honour by the locks;
So he, that doth redeem her thence, might wear
Without Corrival all her Dignities.

But out upon this half-fac'd fellowship!
Wor. He apprehends

a world of figures here,

But not the form of what he fhould attend

-Good Coufin, give me audience for a while.

Hot. I cry you mercy.

Wor. Thofe fame noble Scots, That are your prifoners

Hot. I'll keep them all;

By heav'n, he fhall not have a Scot of them;
No, if a Scot would fave his foul, he fhall not
I'll keep them, by this hand.

Wor. You ftart away,

And lend no ear unto my purpofes;
Those prifoners you fhall keep.
Hot. I will; that's flat.

He faid, he would not ransom Mortimer,
Forbad my tongue to fpeak of Mortimer
But I will find him when he lies asleep,
And in his ear I'll holla, Mortimer!

motion of turbulent defire; as
the dark expreffion of indeter-
mined thoughts. The paffage
from Euripides is furely not alle-
gorical, yet it is produced, and
properly, as parallel.

But out upon this half-fac'd fellowship! I think this finely expreffed. The image is taken from one who turns from another, fo as to ftand before him with a fide face; which implied neither a full conforting, nor a feparation. WARB.

I cannot think this word right ly explained. It alludes rather

to drefs. A coat is faid to be faced, when part of it, as the fleeves or bofom, is covered with fomething finer and more fplendid than the main fubftance. The mantua-makers ftill use the word. Half-fac'd fellowship is then partnerfhip but half adorned, partnerfhip which yet wants half the here of dignities and honours.

a world of figures here, &c.] Figure is ufed here equivocally. As it is applied to Hot-pur's fpeech, it is a rhetorical mode; as oppofed to form, it means appearance or shape.

Nay,

Nay, I will have a Starling taught to speak
Nothing but Mortimer, and give it him,
To keep his anger still in motion.
Wor. Hear you, coufin, a word.

Hot. All Studies here I folemnly defy,
Save how to gall and pinch this Bolingbroke.

7 And that fame fword-and-buckler Prince of Wales,
But that, I think, his father loves him not,
And would be glad he met with fome mifchance,
I'd have him poison'd with a pot of ale.

Wor. Farewel, my kinfman! I will talk to you,
When you are better temper'd to attend.

North. Why, what a wafp-tongu'd and impatient fool, Art thou, to break into this woman's mood, Tying thine ear to no tongue but thine own?

Hot. Why, look you, I am whipt and fcourg'd with rods,

Nettled, and stung with pifmires, when I hear
Of this vile politician Bolingbroke.

In Richard's time-what do ye call the place?-
A plague upon't!-it is in Glo'ftershire-
'Twas where the mad-cap Duke his uncle kept-
His uncle York-where I first bow'd my knee
Unto this King of Smiles, this Bolingbroke,
When you and he came back from Ravenfpurg.
North. At Berkley castle.

Hot. You fay true:

Why, what a deal of candy'd Courtefy
This fawning greyhound then did proffer me!
Look, when his infant fortune came to age,-
And gentle Harry Percy-and kind coufin-
The Devil take fuch cozeners-God forgive me-
Good uncle, tell your tale, for I have done.

And that fame fword-andbuckler Prince of Wales.] A Royfter, or turbulent fellow, that fought in the taverns, or raifed diforders in the ftrects, was

called a fwash-backler. In this fenfe fword-and-buckler is ufed here.

*Alluding to what paffed in King Richard, A& II. Śc. IX. K 4

Wor..

Wor. Nay, if you have not, to't again; We'll stay your leisure.

Hot. I have done, i'faith.

Wor. Then once more to your Scottish prifoners.

[To Hot-fpur. Deliver them without their ransom straight,

And make the Dowglas' Son your only mean
For Pow'rs in Scotland; which, for divers reafons
Which I fhall fend you written, be affur'd,

Will eafily be granted.-You, my lord, [To North.
Your Son in Scotland being thus employ'd,
Shall fecretly into the bofom creep

Of that fame noble Prelate, well belov'd,
Th' Archbishop.

Hot. York, is't not?

Wor. True, who bears hard

His brother's death at Bristol, the lord Scroop.
I fpeak not this in eftimation,

As what, I think, might be; but what, I know,
Is ruminated, plotted and fet down;

And only stays but to behold the face

Of that occafion, that fhall bring it on.

Hot. I fmell it. On my life, it will do well.
North. Before the game's a-foot, thou ftill lett'ft *flip.

* I speak not this in eftimation,] Eftimation for conjecture. But between this and the foregoing verse it appears there were fome lines which are now loft. For, confider the fenfe. What was it that was ruminated, plotted, and fet down? Why, as the text ftands at prefent, that the Archbishop bore his brother's death bard. It is plain then that they were fome confequences of that refentment which the fpeaker informed Hot-fpur of, and to which his conclufion of, I speak not this by conjecture, but on good proof, must be referred. But fome

player, I fuppofe, thinking the fpeech too long, ftruck them out.

WARBURTON

If the Editor had, before he wrote his note, read ten lines forward, he would have feen that nothing is omitted. Worcester gives a dark hint of a confpiracy. Hot-pur fmells it, that is, guefes it. Northumberland reproves him for not fuffering Worcester to tell his defign. Hot-fpur, according to the vehemence of his temper, ftill follows his own conjecture.

*To let flip is, to loofe the greyhound.

Hot. It cannot chufe but be a noble Plot; And then the Power of Scotland and of York To join with Mortimer---ha!

Wor. So they fhall.

Hot. In faith, it is exceedingly well aim'd. Wor. And 'tis no little reafon bids us fpeed To fave our heads, by rajfing of a head*; For, bear ourfelves as even as we can, 9 The King will always think him in our debt; And think, we deem ourfelves unfatisfy'd, Till he hath found a time to pay us home, And see already, how he doth begin To make us strangers to his looks of love, Hot. He does, he does; we'll be reveng'd on him. Wor. Coufin, farewel. No further go in this, Than I by letters fhall direct your course. When time is ripe, which will be fuddenly, I'll fteal to Glendower, and lord Mortimer, Where you and Dowglas, and our Pow'rs at once, (As I will fashion it) hall happily meet, To bear our fortunes in our own ftrong arms, Which now we hold at much uncertainty.

North. Farewel, good brother; we shall thrive, I truft.

Hot. Uncle, adieu. O let the hours be fhort, 'Till fields, and blows, and groans applaud our fport!

A bead is a body of forces. ? This is a natural defcription of the ftate of mind between those that have conferred, and those that have received, obliga

[Exeunt.

tions too great to be fatisfied.

That this would be the event of Northumberland's difloyalty, was predicted by King Richard in the former play.

ACT

ACT II.

SCENE I

An Inn at Rochefter.

Enter a Carrier with a Lanthorn in his Hand.

H

I CARRIER.

EIGH ho! an't be not four by the day, I'll be hang'd. Charles' wain is over the new chimney, and yet our horfe not packt. What, oftler?

Oft. [within.] Anon, anon.

1 Car. I pr'ythee, Tom, beat Cutt's faddle, put a few flocks in the point; the poor jade is wrung in the withers, out of all cefs.

I

Enter another Carrier.

2

2 Car. Peafe and beans are as dank here as a dog, and that is the next way to give poor jades the 3 bots: this houfe is turn'd upfide down, fince Robin Oftler dy'd.

1 Car. Poor fellow never joy'd fince the price of oats rofe; it was the death of him.

2 Car. I think, ,this be the most villianous house in all London road for fleas : I am stung like a Tench. 1 Car. Like a Tench? by th' Mafs, there's ne'er

being taken from a cefs, tax or fubfidy; which being by regular and moderate rates, when any thing was exorbitant, or out of measure, it was faid to be, out of all cefs. WARBURTON.

2

as dank.] i. e. wet, rotten. POPE.

3 Botts are worms in the ftomach of a horse.