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Sir, this I hear,-The king is come to his | SCENE 11.-A Field between the Two Camps.

daughter,

With others, whom the rigour of our state
Fore'd to cry out. Where I could not be honest,

I never yet was valiant: for this business,
It touches us as France invades our land,
Not bolds the king; with others, whem, I
fear,

Most just and heavy causes make oppose.t
Edm. Sir, you speak nobly.

Reg. Why is this reason'd? ·

Gon. Combine together 'gainst the enemy: or these domestic and particular broils rt not to question here.

Alb. Let us then determine

ith the ancient of war on our proceedings. Edm. I shall attend you presently at your

tent.

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Edm. The enemy's in view; draw up your powers. [forces Here is the guess of their true strength and By diligent discovery;—but your haste Is now urg'd on you.

Alb. We will greet the time.§ [Exit.
Edm. To both these sisters have I sworn my
Each jealous of the other, as the stung [love;
Are of the adder. Which of them shall I take?
Both? one? or neither? Neither can be enjoy'd,
If both remain alive: To take the widow,
Exasperates, makes mad her sister Goneril;
And hardly shall I carry out my side,
Her husband being alive. Now then, we'll use
His countenance for the battle; which being
done,

Let her, who would be rid of him, devise
His speedy taking off. As for the mercy
Which he intends to Lear, and to Cordelia,-
The battle done, and they within our power,
Shall never see his pardon: for my state
Stands on me to defend, not to debate. [Exit.

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Alarum within.-Enter, with Drum and Colours,

LEAR, CORDELIA, and their Forces; and Exeunt.

Enter EDGAR and GLOSTER.

tree

Edg. Here, father, take the shadow of this [thrive: For your good host; pray that the right may If ever I return to you again,

I'll bring you comfort.

Glo. Grace go with you, Sir! [Exit EDGAR. Alarums; afterwards a Retreat.-Re-enter EDGAR. Edg. Away, old man, give me thy hand,

away;

[ta en: King Lear hath lost, he and his daughter Give me thy hand, come on.

Glo. No further, Sir; a man may rot eveD here.

Edg. What, in ill thoughts again? Men must

endure

Their going hence, even as their coming hither
Ripeness is all: Come on.
Glo. And that's true too.

[Exeuni

SCENE III.-The British Camp near Dover. Enter, in Conquest, with Drum und Colours, EDMUND; LEAR and CORDELIA, as Prisoners, Officers, Soldiers, &c.

Edm. Some officers take them away: good Until their greater pleasures first be know guard; That are to censuret them.

Cor. We are not the first, [worst. Who, with best meaning, have incurr'd the For thee, oppressed king, am I cast down; Myself could else out-frown false fortune's frown.[sisters? Shall we not see these daughters, and these Lear. No, no, no, no! Come, let's away to

prison:

We two alone will sing like birds i'the cage: When thou dost ask my blessing, I'll kneel down,

And ask of thee forgiveness: So we'll live, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh

At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues Talk of court news; and we'll talk with them too,[outWho loses, and who wins; who's in, who's And take upon us the mystery of things, As if we were God's spies: And we'll wear out, [ones, In a wall'd' prison, packs and sects of great That ebb and flow by the moon.

Edm. Take them away.

Lear. Upon such sacrifices, my Cordelia, The gods themselves throw incense. Have I caught thee?

He, that parts us, shall bring a brand from

heaven,

[eyes;

And fire us hence, like foxes. Wipe thine The goujeerst shall devour them, flesh and fell. Ere they shall make us weep: we'll see them

starve first.

Come. [Exeunt LEAR and CORDELIA, guarded,
Edm. Come hither, captain; hark.
Take thou this note; [Giring a Paper.] go, fol-
low them to prison:

One step I have advanc'd thee; if thou dost
As this instructs thee, thou dost make thy war
To noble fortunes: Know thou this,-that men
Are as the time is: to be tender-minded

I. e. To be ready prepared, 16 1!l.

+ Pass judgement on them.

1 The French disease

Skin.

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Mark,-I say, instantly; and carry it so,
As I have set it down.

Off. I cannot draw a cart, nor eat dried oats;
If it be man's work, I will do it.

[Exit OFFICER. Flourish. Enter ALBANY, GONERIL, REGAN,

OFFICERS, and Attendants.

Alb. Sir, you have shown to-day your val-
iant strain,
[tives
And fortune led you well: You have the cap-
Who were the opposites of this day's strife:
We do require them of you; so to use them,
As we shall find their merits and our safety
May equally determine.

Edm. Sir, I thought it fit

To send the old and miserable king
To some retention, and appointed guard;
Whose age has charms in it, whose title more,
To pluck the common bosom on his side,
And turn our impress'd lances in our eyes
Which do command them. With him I sent
the queen;

My reason all the same; and they are ready
To-morrow, or at further space, to appear
Where you shall hold your session. At this
time,
[friend;
We sweat, and bleed: the friend hath lost his
And the best quarrels, in the heat, are curs'd
By those that feel their sharpness:-
The question of Cordelia, and her father,
Requires a fitter place.t

Alb. Sir, by your patience,

I hold you but a subject of this war,
Not as a brother.

Reg. That's as we list to grace him. Methinks, our pleasure might have been demanded,

Ere you had spoke so far. He led our powers;
Bore the commission of my place and person;
The which immediacy may well stand up,
And call itself your brother.

Gon. Not so hot:

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By me invested, he compeers the best.

Gon. That were the most, if he should hus-
band you.

Reg. Jesters do oft prove prophets.
Gon. Holloa, holloa!

That eye, that told you so, look'd but a-squint.
Reg. Lady, I am not well; else I should

answer

From a full-flowing stomach.-General,
Take thou my soldiers, prisoners, patrimony;
Dispose of them, of me; the walls are thine:
Witness the world, that I create thee here
My lord and master.

Gon. Mean you to enjoy him?

Alb. The let-alone lies not in your good will.

Edm. Nor in thine, lord.

Alb. Half-blooded fellow,

yes.

Admit of debate.

To be discoursed of in greater privacy.
Authority to act on his own judgement.

Reg. Let the drum strike, and prove my
title thine.
[To EDMUND

Alb. Stay yet; hea reason:-Edmund, I
arrest thee

On capital treason; and, in thy arrest,
This gilded serpent: [Pointing to GoN.]—-for
your claim, fair sister,

I bar it in the interest of my wife;
'Tis she is sub-contracted to this lord,
And I, her husband, contradict your bans.
If you will marry, make your love to me,
My lady is bespoke.

Gon. An interlude!

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Alb. She is not well; convey her to my tent.
[Exit REGAN, led.
Come hither, herald,-Let the trumpet sound,-
And read out this.
Off. Sound, trumpet.

[A Trumpet sounds. HERALD reads.

If any man of quality, or degree, within the lists of the army, will maintain upon EDMUND, supposed earl of GLOSTER, that he is a manifold truitor, let him appear at the third sound of the trumpet: He is bold in his defence.

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[Trumpet answers within.

Enter EDGAR, armed, preceded by a Trumpet. Alb. Ask him his purposes, why he appears Upon this call o'the trumpet.

Her. What are you?

Your name, your quality? and why you answer
This present summons?

By treason's tooth bare-gnawn, and canker-
Edg. Know, my name is lost;
Yet am I noble, as the adversary [bit:
I come to cope withal.

Alb. Which is that adversary?
Edg. What's he, that speaks for Edmund
earl of Gloster?

Edm. Himself;-What say'st thou to him?
Edg. Draw thy sword;

That, if my speech offend a noble heart,
Thy arm may do thee justice: here is mine.
Behold, it is the privilege of mine honours,

Alluding to the proverb: "Love being jealous makes My oath and my profession: I protest,

good eye look a-squint."

The hinderance.

1. e. Valour.

Maugre thy strength, youth, place, and emi- | And, when 'tis told, O, that my heart would The bloody proclamation to escape, [burst!That follow'd me so near, (O our lives' sweet

nence,

Despite thy victor sword, and fire-new fortune,
Thy valour, and thy heart,-thou art a traitor:
False to thy gods, thy brother, and thy father;
Conspirant gainst this high illustrious prince;
And, from the extremest upward of thy head,
To the descent and dust beneath thy feet,
A most toad-spotted traitor. Say thou, No,
This sword, this arm, and my best spirits, are
bent

To prove upon thy heart, whereto I speak
Thou liest.

Edm. In wisdom, I should ask thy name;t But, since thy outside looks so fair and warlike, [breathes, And that thy tongue some 'say of breeding What safe and nicely I might well delay By rule of knighthood, I disdain and spurn: Back do I toss these treasons to thy head; With the hell-hated lie o'erwhelm thy heart; Which, (for they yet glance by, and scarcely bruise,) [way, This sword of mine shall give them instant Where they shall rest for ever.-Trumpets, speak.

[Alarums.-They fight.—EDMUND falls. save him, save him!

Alb. Gon. This is mere practice, Gloster: By the law of arms, thou wast not bound to

answer

An unknown opposite; thou art not vanBut cozen'd and beguil'd. [quish'd,

Alb. Shut your mouth, dame, Or with this paper shall I stop it:-Hold, Sir:Thou worse than any name, read thine own evil:

No tearing, lady; I perceive, you know it. [Gives the Letter to EDMUND. Gon. Say, if I do; the laws are mine, not Who shall arraign me for't? [thine:

Alb. Most monstrous! Know'st thou this paper?

Gon. Ask me not what I know.

[Exit GONERIL. Alb. Go after her: she's desperate; govern her. [To an OFFICER, who goes out. Edm. What you have charg'd me with, that have I done;

[out; And more, much more: the time will bring it 'Tis past, and so am I: But what art thou, That hast this fortune on me? If thou art noble, I do forgive thee.

Edg. Let's exchange charity.

I am no less in blood than thou art, Edmund;
If more, the more thou hast wrong'd mc.
My name is Edgar, and thy father's son.
The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices
Make instruments to scourge us:

The dark and vicious place where thee he got,
Cost him his eyes.

Edm. Thou hast spoken right, 'tis true; The wheel is come full circle; I am here. Alb. Methought, thy very gait did prophesy A royal nobleness:-I must embrace thee; Let sorrow split my heart, if ever I Did hate thee, or thy father!

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ness!

That with the pain of death we'd hourly die,
Rather than die at once!) taught me to shift
Into a madman's rags; to assume a sem-
blance

That very dogs disdain'd: and in this habit
Met I my father with his bleeding rings,
Their precious stones new lost; became his
guide,
[despair;
Led him, begg'd for him, sav'd him from
Never (O fault!) reveal'd myself unto him,
Until some half hour past, when I was arm'd,
Not sure, though hoping, of this good success,
I ask'd his blessing, and from first to last
Told him my pilgrimage: But his flaw'd
heart,

(Alack, too weak the conflict to support!) Twixt two extremes of passion, joy and grief, Burst smilingly.

Edm. This speech of yours hath mov'd me, And shall, perchance, do good: but speak

you on;

You look as you had something more to say. Alb. If there be more, more woeful, hold it For I am almost ready to dissolve, [in; Hearing of this.

Edg. This would have seem'd a period To such as love not sorrow; but another, To amplify too much, would make much more, And top extremity. [man, Whilst I was big in clamour, came there a Who having seen me in my worst estate, Shunn'd my abhorr'd society; but then, finding Who 'twas that so endur'd, with his strong

arms

He fasten'd on my neck, and bellow'd out
As he'd burst heaven; threw him on my fa-
ther;

Told the most piteous tale of Lear and him,
That ever ear receiv'd: which in recounting
His grief grew puissant, and the strings of life
Began to crack: Twice then the trumpet
sounded,
And there I left him tranc'd.

Alb. But who was this?

Edg. Kent, Sir, the banish'd Kent; who in disguise

Follow'd his enemy king, and did him service Improper for a slave.

Enter a GENTLEMAN hastily, with a bloody Knife.

Gent. Help! help! O help!

Edg. What kind of help?

Alb. Speak, man.

Edg. What means that bloody knife?
Gent. 'Tis hot, it smokes ;

It came even from the heart of-
Alb. Who, man? speak.

Gent. Your lady, Sir, your lady: and her By her is poison'd; she confesses it. [sister Edm. I was contracted to them both; all Now marry in an instant.

[three

Alb. Produce their bodies, be they alive or

dead!

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Kent. I am come

To bid my king and master aye* good night;
Is he not here?

Alh. Great thing of us forgot!-
Speak, Edmund, where's the king? and where's
Cordelia?-

See'st thou this object, Kent?

[The Bodies of GONERIL and REGAN
cre brought in.

Kent. Alack, why thus?

Edm. Yet Edmund was belov'd:
The one the other poison'd for my sake,
And after slew herself.

Alb. Even so.-Cover their faces.

Edm. I pant for life:-Some good I mean to
do,

Despite of mine own nature. Quickly send,—
Be brief in it,-to the castle; for my writ
Is on the life of Lear, and on Cordelia:-
Nay, send in time.

Alb. Run, run, O, run

875

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man;

Lear. I'll see that straight.

Kent. That, from your first of difference and Have follow'd your sad steps. [decay,

Lear. You are welcome hither.

Kent. Nor no man else; all's cheerless, dark, and deadly.[selves, Your eldest daughters have fore-doom'd themAnd desperately are dead. Lear. Ay, so I think.

Alb. He knows not what he says; and vain

Edg. To who, my lord?-Who has the of- That we present us to him.

fice? send

Thy token of reprieve.

Edm. Well thought on; take my sword,
Give it the captain.

Alb. Haste thee, for thy life. [Exit EDGAR.
Edm. He hath commission from thy wife

and me

To hang Cordelia in the prison, and
To lay the blame upon her own despair,
That she fordid herself.t

Alb. The gods defend her! Bear him hence
awhile.
[EDMUND is borne off.
Enter LEAR, with CORDELIA dead in his Arms;
EDGAR, OFFICER, and others.
Lear. Howl, howl, howl, howl!-O, you are
men of stones;

Had I your tongues and eyes, I'd use them so That heaven's vault should crack :-O, she is gone for ever!

I know when one is dead, and when one lives;
She's dead as earth:-Lend me a looking-
glass;

If that her breath will mist or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives.

Kent. Is this the promis'd end?‡
Edg. Or image of that horror?
Alb. Fall, and cease!§

Lear. This feather stirs; she lives! if it be

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Edg. Very bootless.

Enter an OFFICER.

(it is

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Stretch him out longer.

That would upon the rack of this tough world

Edg. O, he is gone, indeed.

He but usurp'd his life.

Kent. The wonder is, he hath endur'd so

[long:

Alb. Bear them from hence.-Our present business Is general woe. twain

Friends of my soul, you [To KENT and EDGAR. Rule in this realm, and the gor'd state sustain. Kent. I have a journey, Sir, shortly to go; My master calls, and I must not say, no. Alb. The weight of this sad time we must obey;

young,

Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.
The oldest hath borne most: we, that are
Shall never see so much, nor live so long.
[Exeunt, with a dead March.
+ Benefit.
§ Titles.
Poor fool, in the time of Shakspeare was an expression

* Useless.

of endearment.

† I. e. Lear.

¶ Die.

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Gre. But thou art not quickly moved to

strike.

Sam. A dog of the house of Montague moves

me.

Gre. To move, is-to stir; and to be valiant, is-to stand to it: therefore, if thou art mov'd, thou run'st away.

Sam. A dog of that house shall move me to stand: I will take the wall of any man or maid of Montague's.

Gre. That shows thee a weak slave; for the weakest goes to the wall.

Sam. True; and therefore women, being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall:therefore I will push Montague's men from the wall, and thrust his maids to the wall.

Gre. The quarrel is between our masters, and us their men.

Sam. 'Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant: when I have fought with the men, I will be cruel with the maids; I will cut off their heads.

Gre. The heads of the maids?

Sam. Ay, the heads of the maids, or ther maidenheads; take it in what sense thou wilt. Gre. They must take it in sense, that feel

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