When you perceive his blood inclined to mirth ; Thomas, And thou shalt prove a shelter to thy friends; Cla. I shall observe him with all care and love. K. Hen. Why art thou not at Windsor with him, Thomas? Cla. He is not there to-day; he dines in London. K. Hen. And how accompanied? canst thou tell that? Cla. With Poins, and other his continual followers. K. Hen. Most subject is the fattest soil to weeds; And he, the noble image of my youth, Is overspread with them. Therefore my grief The blood weeps from my heart, when I do shape, War. My gracious lord, you look beyond him quite The prince but studies his companions, Like a strange tongue; wherein, to gain the language, 'Tis needful, that the most immodest word Be looked upon, and learned; which once attained, 1 Though their blood be inflamed by the temptations to which youth is peculiarly subject. Your highness knows, comes to no further use, By which his grace must mete the lives of others; K. Hen. 'Tis seldom-when the bee doth leave her comb In the dead carrion.-Who's here? Westmoreland? Enter WESTMORELAND. West. Health to my sovereign! and new happiness Added to that that I am to deliver! Prince John, your son, doth kiss your grace's hand. K. Hen. O, Westmoreland, thou art a summer bird, Which ever in the haunch of winter sings The lifting up of day. Look! here's more news. Enter HARCOURT. Har. From enemies Heaven keep your majesty The earl Northumberland, and the lord Bard 'rb, 1 The detail contained in prince John's lett K. Hen. And wherefore should these good news make me sick? - Will fortune never come with both hands full, [Swoons. Cla. Ó my royal father! West. My sovereign lord, cheer up yourself; look up! War. Be patient, princes; you do know, these fits Are with his highness very ordinary. Stand from him; give him air; he'll straight be well. Hath wrought the mure,' that should confine it in, serve Unfathered heirs, and loathly birds of nature. Say, it did so, a little time before That our great grandsire, Edward, sicked and died. War. Speak lower, princes, for the king recovers. P. Humph. This apoplex will, certain, be his end. K. Hen. I pray you, take me up, and bear me hence Into some other chamber; softly, 'pray. [They convey the King into an inner part of the room, and place him on a bed. 1 Mure for wall is another of Shakspeare's Latinisms. It was not in frequent use by his contemporaries. 2 That is, equivocal births, monsters. Let there be no noise made, my gentle friends; Will whisper music to my weary spirit. War. Call for the music in the other room. P. Hen. Enter PRINCE HENRY. Who saw the duke of Clarence? Cla. I am here, brother, full of heaviness. P. Hen. How now! rain within doors, and none abroad! How doth the king? P. Humph. Exceeding ill. P. Hen. Tell it him. Heard he the good news yet? P. Humph. He altered much upon the hearing it. P. Hen. If he be sick With joy, he will recover without physic. War. Not so much noise, my lords ;-sweet prince, speak low; The king your father is disposed to sleep. Cla. Let us withdraw into the other room. War. Will't please your grace to go along with us? O polished perturbation! golden care! 1 Dull and slow were synonymous. "Dullness, slowness; tarditas, tardivete. Somewhat dull or slowe; tardiusculus, tardelet;" says Baret. But Shakspeare uses dulness for drowsiness in the Tempest. And Baret has also this sense:-"Slow, dull, asleepe, drousie, astonied, heavie; torpidus." It has always been thought that slow music induces sleep. 2 The hint only of this beautiful scene is taken from Holinshed, p. 541 As he, whose brow, with homely biggin' bound, That scalds with safety. By his gates of breath [Putting it on his head. Which Heaven shall guard; and put the world's whole strength Into one giant arm, it shall not force This lineal honor from me. This from thee Will I to mine leave, as 'tis left to me. K. Hen. Warwick! Gloster! Clarence! Re-enter WARWICK, and the rest. [Exit. Cla. grace? K. Hen. Why did you leave me here alone, my lords? Cla. We left the prince my brother here, my liege, Who undertook to sit and watch by you. K. Hen. The prince of Wales? Where is he? let me see him. He is not here. 1 A biggin was a head-band of coarse cloth; so called because such a forehead-cloth was worn by the Beguines, an order of nuns. 2 i. e. circle; probably from the old Italian rigolo, a small wheel. |