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His words to wayward ficklinefs, and age.
He loves you, on my life; and holds you dear
As Harry Duke of Hereford, were he here.

K. Rich. Right, you fay true; as Hereford's love, fo his ;

As theirs, fo mine; and all be, as it is.

SCENE III.

Enter Northumberland.

North. My Liege, old Gaunt commends him to your Majefty.

K. Rich. What fays old Gaunt?

North. Nay, nothing; all is faid.

His tongue is now a ftringlefs inftrument,

Words, life, and all, old Lancaster hath spent.

York. Be York the next, that must be bankrupt fo! Though death be poor, it ends a mortal woe.

K. Rich. The ripest fruit first falls, and so doth he;
His time is spent, our pilgrimage must be.
So much for that.- Now for our Irish wars;
We must fupplant thofe rough rug-headed Kerns,
Which live like venom, where no venom else,
But only they, have privilege to live.
And, for these great affairs do afk fome charge,
To'rds our affiftance we do feize to us.

The plate, coin, revenues, and moveables,
Whereof our uncle Gaunt did ftand poffeft.

Tork. How long fhall I be patient? Oh, how long
Shall tender Duty make me fuffer wrong?
Not Glo'fter's death, not Hereford's Banishment,
Not Gaunt's rebukes, nor England's private wrongs,
Nor the prevention of poor Bolingbroke
About his marriage, nor my own difgrace,
Have ever made me fow'r my patient cheek
Or bend one wrinkle on my Sovereign's face.
I am the last of noble Edward's fons,

;

Of

Of whom thy father, Prince of Wales, was firt;
In war, was never Lion rag'd more fierce,

In peace, was never gentle Lamb more mild,
Than was that young and princely Gentleman:
His face thou haft, for even fo look'd he,
Accomplish'd with the number of thy hours.
But when he frown'd, it was against the French,
And not against his friends; his noble hand
Did win what he did spend; and spent not That,
Which his triumphant father's hand had won.
His hands were guilty of no kindred's blood,
But bloody with the enemies of his kin.
Oh, Richard! York is too far gone with grief,
Or else he never would compare between.

K. Rich. Why, uncle, what's the matter?
York. O my Liege,

Pardon me, if you please; if not, I, pleas'd
Not to be pardon'd, am content withal.

Seek you to feize, and gripe into your hands,
The Royalties and Rights of banish'd Hereford?
Is not Gaunt dead, and doth not Hereford live?
Was not Gaunt juft, and is not Harry true?
Did not the one deferve to have an heir?
Is not his heir a well-deferving fon?

Take Hereford's Rights away, and take from time
His Charters, and his cuftomary Rights;
Let not to-morrow then enfue to day;
Be not thyself; for how art thou a King,
But by fair fequence and fucceffion?

If you do wrongfully feize Hereford's Right,
Call in his letters patents that he hath,
By his attorneys-general to fue

His livery, and * deny his offer'd homage;
You pluck a thousand dangers on your head;
You lose a thousand well-difpofed hearts;

And prick my tender patience to those thoughts,

Deny his offer'd homage.] mage, by which he is to hold his That is, refule to admit the ho- lands.

VOL IV.

D

Which

Which honour and allegiance cannot think.

K. Rich. Think what you will, we feize into our hands

His plate, his goods, his money, and his lands.

York. I'll not be by, the while; my Liege, farewel : What will enfue hereof, there's none can tell. But by bad courses may be understood,

That their events can never fall out good.

[Exit.

K. Rich. Go, Busby, to the Earl of Wiltshire ftraight,

Bid him repair to us to Ely-house,

To fee this bufinefs done. To morrow next

We will for Ireland; and 'tis time, I trow.

And we create, in absence of ourself,

Our uncle York Lord-governor of England,
For he is juft, and always lov'd us well.

Come on, our Queen; to morrow muft we part;
Be merry, for our time of Stay is short.

Flourish.

[Exeunt, King, Queen, &c.

SCENE IV.

Manent Northumberland, Willoughby, and Rofs.

North. Well, Lords, the Duke of Lancaster is dead. Rofs. And living too, for now his fon is Duke. Willo. Barely in title, not in revenue.

North. Richly in both, if juftice had her right. Rofs. My heart is great; but it must break with filence,

Ere't be difburden'd with a lib'ral tongue.

North. Nay, fpeak thy mind; and let him ne'er fpeak more,

That speaks thy words again to do thee harm.
Willo. Tends, what you'd fpeak, to the Duke of
Hereford?

If it be fo, out with it boldly, man:

Quick is mine ear to hear of good tow'rds him.
Rofs. No good at all that I can do for him,

Unless you call it good to pity him,

Bereft

Bereft and gelded of his patrimony.

North. Now, afore heav'n, it's fhame, fuch wrongs
are borne

In him a royal Prince, and many more
Of noble blood in this declining Land;
The King is not himself, but bafely led
By flatterers; and what they will inform
Merely in hate 'gainst any of us all,

That will the King feverely profecute

'Gainft us, our lives, our children, and our heirs.
Rofs. The Commons hath he pill'd with grievous
Taxes,

And loft their hearts; the Nobles he hath fin'd
For ancient quarrels, and quite loft their hearts.
Willo. And daily new exactions are devis'd;
As Blanks, Benevolences, I wot not what?
But what o' God's name doth become of this?
North. Wars have not wafted it, for warr'd he hath
not,

But bafely yielded upon compromife

That, which his Ancestors atchiev'd with blows;
More hath he spent in peace, than they in wars.

Rofs. The Earl of Wiltshire hath the Realm in farm.
Willo. The King's grown bankrupt, like a broken

man.

North. Reproach, and diffolution, hangeth over him. Rofs. He hath not mony for thefe Irifb wars, His burthenous taxations notwithstanding, But by the robbing of the banish'd Duke.

North. His noble Kinfman. Moft degenerate King! But, lords, we hear this fearful tempeft fing, Yet feek no fhelter to avoid the ftorm: We fee the wind fit fore upon our fails, And yet we strike not, but fecurely perish.

Rofs. We see the very wreck, that we must fuffer;

To frike the fails, is, to contract them when there is too much wind.

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And unavoided is the danger now,

For fuff'ring fo the caufes of our wreck.

North. Not fo; ev'n through the hollow eyes of
Death

I fpy life peering; but I dare not fay,
How near the tidings of our comfort is.

Willo. Nay, let us fhare thy thoughts, as thou doft

ours.

Rofs. Be confident to speak, Northumberland; We three are but thyfelf, and speaking fo, Thy words are but as thoughts, therefore be bold. North. Then thus, my friends. I have from Port le Blanc,

A bay in Bretagne, had intelligence,

That Harry Hereford, Rainald lord Cobham,
That late broke from the Duke of Exeter,
His brother, Archbishop late of Canterbury,
Sir Thomas Erpingham, Sir John Rainston,

Sir John Norberie, Sir Robert Waterton, and Francis
Coines,

All these well furnish'd by the Duke of Bretagne,
With eight tall fhips, three thoufand men of war,
Are making hither with all due expedience,
And shortly mean to touch our northern shore
Perhaps, they had ere this; but that they stay
The first departing of the King for Ireland.
If then we shall shake off our flavish yoak,
Imp out our drooping Country's broken wing,
Redeem from broking Pawn the blemish'd Crown,
Wipe off the duft that hides our Scepter's gilt,
And make high Majefty look like itself.
Away with me in poft to Ravenspurg;
But if you faint, as fearing to do so,
Stay, and be fecret, and myfelf will go.

Rofs. To horfe, to horfe; urge Doubts to them that
fear.

Willo. Hold out my horfe, and I will first be there.

6

[Exeunt. SCENE

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