Enter, at one side, KING JOHN, with his Power, ELINOR, BLANCH, and the Bastard; at the other, KING PHILIP, Lewis, Austria, and Forces. K. John. France, hast thou yet more blood to cast away? Say, shall the current of our right roam on, Whose passage, vex'd with thy impediment, Shall leave his native channel, and o'erswell With course disturb'd even thy confining shores, Unless thou let his silver water keep A peaceful progress to the ocean? K. Phi. England, thou hast not sav'd one drop of blood, We'll put thee down, 'gainst whom these arms we bear, Gracing the scroll, that tells of this war's loss, Bast. Ha, majesty! how high thy glory towers, Why stand these royal fronts amazed thus? The other's peace; till then, blows, blood, and death! And bear possession of our person here; Lord of our presence, Angiers, and of you. Hubert. A greater power than we denies all this; And, till it be undoubted, we do lock Our former scruple in our strong-barr'd gates, Kings, of our fear,' until our fears, resolv'd, Be by some certain king purg'd and depos'd. Bast. By heaven, these scroyles' of Angiers flout you, kings; (1) Of our fear, i. e. by reason of our fear. (2) Scroyles, mean scabby rascals; from les escrouelles, the king's evil. And stand securely on their battlements, Be friends a while, and both conjointly bend Leave them as naked as the vulgar air. To whom in favour she shall give the day, How like you this wild counsel, mighty states? Smacks it not something of the policy? K. John. Now, by the sky that hangs above our heads, I like it well;-France, shall we knit our powers, And lay this Angiers even with the ground; Then, after, fight who shall be king of it? Bast. An if thou hast the mettle of a king, Being wrong'd, as we are, by this peevish town, Turn thou the mouth of thy artillery, As we will ours, against these saucy walls : And when that we have dash'd them to the ground, Make work upon ourselves, for heaven, or hell. K. Phi. Let it be so :—Say, where will you assault? Into this city's bosom. Aust. I from the north. Our thunder from the south, Shall rain their drift of bullets on this town. Bast. O prudent discipline! From north to south; Austria and France shoot in each other's mouth: I'll stir them to it :-Come, away, away! And I shall show you peace, and fair-fac'd league; [Aside. Hubert. Hear us, great kings: vouchsafe a while to stay, Win you this city without stroke or wound; Rescue those breathing lives to die in beds, That here come sacrifices for the field: K. John. Speak on, with favour; we are bent to hear. Is the young Dauphin every way complete; And she again wants nothing, to name want, He is the half part of a blessed man, Do glorify the banks that bound them in: And two such shores to two such streams made one, Two such controlling bounds shall you be, kings, Lions more confident, mountains and rocks As we to keep this city. Bast. Here's a stay,2 That shakes the rotten carcase of old death Out of his rags! Here's a large mouth, indeed, As maids of thirteen do of puppy-dogs! What cannoneer begot this lusty blood? (1) Zealous love. religion. Zealous here signifies pious, influenced by motives of (2) Here's a stay. Stay is here used for interruption. Dr. Johnson proposes to read, flaw, i. e. here's a gust of bravery, here's a blast of menace. He speaks plain cannon, fire, and smoke, and bounce; Our ears are cudgell'd; not a word of his, Eli. Son, list to this conjunction, make this match; Mark, how they whisper: urge them, while their souls Lest zeal, now melted, by the windy breath Of soft petitions, pity, and remorse, Cool and congeal again to what it was. Hubert. Why answer not the double majesties This friendly treaty of our threaten'd town? K. Phi. Speak England first, that hath been forward first To speak unto this city: What say you? K. John. If that the Dauphin there, thy princely son, Can in this book of beauty read, I love, Her dowry shall weigh equal with a queen: For Anjou, and fair Touraine, Maine, Poictiers, Shall gild her bridal bed; and make her rich As she in beauty, education, blood, Holds hand with any princess of the world. K. Phi. What says't thou, boy? look in the lady's face, A wonder, or a wondrous miracle, The shadow of myself form'd in her eye; Becomes a sun, and makes your son a shadow: Till now infixed I beheld myself, Drawn in the flattering table of her eye. [Whispers with BLANCH. Bast. Drawn in the flattering table of her eye!- K That hang'd, and drawn, and quarter'd, there should be, Blanch. My uncle's will, in this respect, is mine. Than this, that nothing do I see in you, Though churlish thoughts themselves should be your judge, That I can find should merit any hate. K. John. What say these young ones? What say you, my niece? Blanch. That she is bound in honour still to do What you in wisdom still vouchsafe to say. K. John. Speak then, prince Dauphin; can you love this lady? Lew. Nay, ask me if I can refrain from love; K. John. Then do I give Volquessen, Touraine, Maine, K. Phi. It likes us well. Young princes, close your hands. That I did so, when I was first assur'd.' K. Phi. Now, citizens of Angiers, ope your gates, Where is she and her son? tell me, who knows. Lew. She is sad and passionate at your highness' tent. K. Phi. And, by my faith, this league, that we have made, Will give her sadness very little cure. Brother of England, how may we content This widow lady? In her right we came; (1) And your lips too, &c. The betrothal was anciently not a mere agreement, but a religious contract, and as such was blessed by the priest; joining of hands and kissing was a part of the ceremony of this assurance. |