P. Hen. I shall hereafter, my thrice-gracious lord, Be more myself.

K. Hen.

For all the world,

As thou art to this hour, was Richard then,
When I from France set foot at Ravenspurg;
And even as I was then, is Percy now.
Now by my scepter, and my soul to boot,
He hath more worthy interest to the state,
Than thou the shadow of succession:
For of no right, nor colour like to right,
He doth fill fields with harness in the realm,
Turns head against the lion's armed jaws,
And, being no more in debt to years than thou,
Leads ancient lords and reverend bishops on
To bloody battles, and to bruising arms.
What never-dying honour hath he got

Against renowned Douglas; whose high deeds,
Whose hot incursions, and great name in arms,
Holds from all soldiers chief majority,

And military title capital,

Through all the kingdoms that acknowledge Christ.
Thrice hath this Hotspur, Mars in swathing clothes,
This infant warrior, in his enterprizes

Discomfited great Douglas; ta'en him once,
Enlarged him, and made a friend of him,

To fill the mouth of deep defiance up,

And shake the peace and safety of our throne.

And what say you to this? Percy, Northumberland,
The archbishop's grace of York, Douglas, Mortimer,
Capitulate against us', and are up.

But wherefore do I tell these news to thee?
Why, Harry, do I tell thee of my foes,

Which art my near'st and dearest enemy?

1 CAPITULATE against us,] This use of the verb in this sense is unusual, but warranted by its etymology: the confederates had drawn up heads of articles against Henry IV., which they dispatched to different quarters, in vindication of their rebellion. Malone quotes Minsheu, who explains " capitulate,” per capita seu articulos pacisci.

66

Thou that art like enough, through vassal fear,
Base inclination, and the start of spleen,
To fight against me under Percy's pay,
To dog his heels, and court'sy at his frowns,
To show how much thou art degenerate2.

P. Hen. Do not think so; you shall not find it so:
And God forgive them, that so much have sway'd
Your majesty's good thoughts away from me!
I will redeem all this on Percy's head,
And in the closing of some glorious day,
Be bold to tell you that I am your son;
When I will wear a garment all of blood,
And stain my favours in a bloody mask3,
Which, wash'd away, shall scour my shame with it.
And that shall be the day, whene'er it lights,
That this same child of honour and renown,
This gallant Hotspur, this all-praised knight,
And your unthought-of Harry, chance to meet.
For every honour sitting on his helm,

'Would they were multitudes; and on my head
My shames redoubled! for the time will come,
That I shall make this northern youth exchange
His glorious deeds for my indignities.
Percy is but my factor, good my lord,
To engross up glorious deeds on my behalf;
And I will call him to so strict account,
That he shall render every glory up,
Yea, even the slightest worship of his time,
Or I will tear the reckoning from his heart.
This, in the name of God, I promise here:

2 To show how much thou art degenerate.] So all the authorities, quarto and folio. Malone thought fit to place the verb last,-" To show how much degenerate thou art." In the next line but one he read, "have so much," instead of so much have."

3 And stain my FAVOURS in a bloody mask,] All the old copies have "favours," but, as Warburton suggests, we ought perhaps to read "favour," i. e. countenance. On the other hand, Steevens and Monck Mason contend that "favours" is to be taken in the common acceptation; but the word "mask seems to show clearly that the prince meant to allude to his face.

The which, if he be pleas'd, I shall perform*,
I do beseech your majesty, may salve
The long-grown wounds of my intemperance:
If not, the end of life cancels all bands;
And I will die a hundred thousand deaths,
Ere break the smallest parcel of this vow.

K. Hen. A hundred thousand rebels die in this!
Thou shalt have charge, and sovereign trust herein.

Enter BLUNT.

How now, good Blunt? thy looks are full of speed.
Blunt. So hath the business that I come to speak of.
Lord Mortimer of Scotland hath sent word,
That Douglas, and the English rebels met,
The eleventh of this month, at Shrewsbury.
A mighty and a fearful head they are,
If promises be kept on every hand,
As ever offer'd foul play in a state.

K. Hen. The earl of Westmoreland set forth to-day,
With him my son, lord John of Lancaster;
For this advertisement is five days old.—

On Wednesday next, Harry, you shall set forward;
On Thursday we ourselves will march:

Our meeting is Bridgnorth; and, Harry, you

Shall march through Glostershire; by which account,
Our business valued, some twelve days hence
Our general forces at Bridgnorth shall meet.
Our hands are full of business: let's away;
Advantage feeds him fat, while men delay.

[Exeunt.

The which, if he be pleas'd, I shall perform,] The folio, 1623, gives this line, "The which, if I perform and do survive." The change being considered necessary in consequence of the substitution of heaven for "God" in the preceding line. In the next line but one it inserts intemperature for "intem

perance."

SCENE III.

Eastcheap. A Room in the Boar's Head Tavern.

Enter FALSTAFF and BARDOLPH.

Fal. Bardolph, am I not fallen away vilely since this last action? do I not bate? do I not dwindle? Why, my skin hangs about me like an old lady's loose gown: I am wither'd like an old apple-John. Well, I'll repent, and that suddenly, while I am in some liking; I shall be out of heart shortly, and then I shall have no strength to repent. An I have not forgotten what the inside of a church is made of, I am a pepper-corn, a brewer's horse. The inside of a church! Company, villainous company, hath been the spoil of me.

Bard. Sir John, you are so fretful, you cannot live long. Fal. Why, there is it.-Come, sing me a bawdy song; make me merry. I was as virtuously given as a gentleman need to be; virtuous enough: swore little; diced not above seven times a week; went to a bawdyhouse not above once in a quarter-of an hour; paid money that I borrowed three or four times; lived well, and in good compass; and now I live out of all order, out of all compass.

Bard. Why, you are so fat, sir John, that you must needs be out of all compass; out of all reasonable compass, sir John.

Fal. Do thou amend thy face, and I'll amend my life. Thou art our admiral, thou bearest the lantern

5

while I am in some LIKING ;] While I have some flesh, some substance. Well-liking has occurred in the same sense in "Love's Labour's Lost," Vol. ii. p. 360:

Well-liking wits they have; gross, gross; fat, fat." The phrase "in good liking" for thriving, occurs in Job xxxix. 4.

Thou art our admiral, &c.] Dekker, (says Steevens,) in his “Wonderful Yeare," 1603, has the same thought. He is describing the host of a country

in the poop, but 'tis in the nose of thee: thou art the knight of the burning lamp.

Bard. Why, sir John, my face does you no harm.

Fal. No; I'll be sworn, I make as good use of it as many a man doth of a death's head, or a memento mori: I never see thy face, but I think upon hell-fire, and Dives that lived in purple; for there he is in his robes, burning, burning. If thou wert any way given to virtue, I would swear by thy face: my oath should be, By this fire, that's God's angel': but thou art altogether given over, and wert, indeed, but for the light in thy face, the son of utter darkness. When thou ran'st up Gads-hill in the night to catch my horse, if I did not think thou hadst been an ignis fatuus, or a ball of wildfire, there's no purchase in money. O! thou art a perpetual triumph, an everlasting bonfire-light. Thou hast saved me a thousand marks in links and torches, walking with thee in the night betwixt tavern and tavern: but the sack that thou hast drunk me, would have bought me lights as good cheap, at the dearest chandler's in Europe. I have maintained that salamander of yours with fire any time this two and thirty years: God reward me for it!

Bard. 'Sblood! I would my face were in your belly. Fal. God-a-mercy! so should I be sure to be heartburned.

Enter Hostess.

How now, dame Partlet the hen? have you inquired yet who picked my pocket?

Host. Why, sir John, what do you think, sir John? Do you think I keep thieves in my house? I have

inn :-" An antiquary might have pickt rare matter out of his nose.—The Hamburghers offered I know not how many dollars for his companie in an EastIndian voyage, to have stoode a nightes in the Poope of their Admirall, onely to save the charges of candles."

7 By this fire, that's God's angel:] This is the reading of all the quartos, and not of those of 1599 and 1608 merely, which Steevens only had the opportunity of consulting. The folio omits "that's God's angel."