And two such shores to two such streams made one,
Two such controlling bounds shall you be, kings,
To these two princes, if you marry them.
This union shall do more than battery can
To our fast-closed gates; for, at this match,
With swifter spleen 29 than powder can enforce,
The mouth of passage shall we fling wide ope,
And give you entrance; but, without this match,
The sea enraged is not half so deaf,

Lions more confident, mountains and rocks

More free from motion: no, not death himself
In mortal fury half so peremptory,

As we to keep this city.

That shakes the rotten carcase of old death

Out of his rags! Here's a large mouth, indeed,

That spits forth death, and mountains, rocks, and seas;

Talks as familiarly of roaring lions,

As maids of thirteen do of puppy-dogs.

What cannoneer begot this lusty blood?

He speaks plain cannon, fire, and smoke, and bounce;

He gives the bastinado with his tongue;

Our ears are cudgell'd: not a word of his,

But buffets better than a fist of France.

Zounds! I was never so bethump'd with words,

Since I first call'd my brother's father, dad.

Eli. Son, list to this conjunction, make this match,

Give with our niece a dowry large enough;

For by this knot thou shalt so surely tie

Thy now unsur'd assurance 31 to the crown,

That yon green boy shall have no sun to ripe

The bloom that promiseth a mighty fruit.

I see a yielding in the looks of France;

Mark, how they whisper: urge them, while their souls
Are capable of this ambition,

Lest zeal, now melted, by the windy breath

29) spleen

stürmischer Eifer, Befeuerung, hat Sh. in diesem Sinne auch sonst; z. B. in K. Richard III. (A. 5, Sc. 3) inspire us with the spleen of fiery dragons. 30 stay, eigentlich Hemmniss, Unterbrechung, wird hier Unterbrecher, gebraucht,

insofern der Bürger von Angers mit seinen Vorschlägen den eben gefassten Beschlüssen der Könige entgegentritt. Sieben Zeilen weiter hat die Fol. kein Comma zwischen cannon und fire.

3.1) So wird sure und assurance verbunden in Macbeth (A. 4, Sc. 1) I'll make assurance double sure.

Of soft petitions, pity, and remorse, 32
Cool and congeal again to what it was.

Cit. 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, 33 and fair Touraine, Maine, Poictiers,

And all that we upon this side the sea (Except this city now by us besieg'd)

Find liable to our crown and dignity,

Shall gild her bridal bed, and make her rich.

In titles, honours, and promotions,

As she in beauty, education, blood,

Holds hand with any princess of the world.

K. Phi. What say'st thou, boy? look in the lady's face.
Lew. I do, my lord; and in her eye I find

A wonder, or a wondrous miracle,

The shadow of myself form'd in her eye,

Which, being but the shadow of your son,
Becomes a sun,

34 and makes your son a shadow.

I do protest, I never 'lov'd myself,

Till now infixed I beheld myself,

Drawn in the flattering table 35 of her eye.

Bast. Drawn in the flattering table of her eye,

Hang'd in the frowning wrinkle of her brow,

And quarter'd in her heart, he doth espy
Himself love's traitor: This is pity now,

[Whispers with BLANCH.

12) remorse = Erbarmen, Zartgefühl. Die Königin versteht darunter den Einfluss, den Constanzens und Arthurs Bitten zur Kräftigung des Eifers bei König Philipp wiedergewinnen möchten, nachdem dieser Eifer für den Augenblick geschwächt, zerschmolzen ist. by the windy breath ist nicht mit melted, sondern mit dem folgenden cool and congeal zu verbinden.

33 Auch hier hat die Fol. Angiers, wofür Theobald Anjou setzte. Vgl. A. 2, Sc. 1,

Anm. 35.

3) Vielleicht ist ein Wortspiel zwischen sun und son beabsichtigt, das auch sonst bei Sh. vorkommt.

-

35) Table ist die Tafel, auf die ein Gemälde aufgetragen wird. Der Dauphin findet sein Bild in dem Auge der Lady Blanch; der Bastard führt dann diesen Vergleich ironisch weiter aus, und fasst to draw zeichnen, to hang hängen, to quarter einquartieren, zugleich doppelsinnig, indem er die Strafe des Hängens, zur Richtstätte Schleifens und Viertheilens auf den Dauphin als Hochverräther (love's traitor) bezieht. Im alten K. John spricht der Bastard seine Liebe zur Lady Blanch und seine Verachtung gegen den Dauphin noch deutlicher aus.

That hang'd, and drawn, and quarter'd, there sould be,
In such a love, so vile a lout as he.

Blanch. My uncle's will in this respect is mine.
If he see aught in you, that makes him like,
That anything 36 he sees, which moves his liking,
I can with ease translate it to my will;
Or if you will, to speak more properly,
I will enforce it easily to my love.
Further I will not flatter you, my lord,
That all I see in you is worthy love,

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,

For I do love her most unfeignedly.

K. John. Then do I give Volquessen, 37 Touraine, Maine,
Poitiers, and Anjou, these five provinces,
With her to thee; and this addition more,
Full thirty thousand marks of English coin.
Philip of France, if thou be pleas'd withal,
Command thy son and daughter to join hands.

K. Phi. It likes us well. Young princes, close your hands.

Aust. And your lips too; for I am well assur'd,

That I did so, when I was first assur'd. 38

K. Phi. Now, citizens of Angiers, ope your gates,

Let in that amity which you have made;
For at saint Mary's chapel presently
The rites of marriage shall be solemniz'd.

Is not the lady Constance in this troop? 39

I know, she is not; for this match, made up,

36) Mit that anything = dieses Etwas, was es auch sein mag, beginnt der Nachsatz: I can translate that anything to my will. Den Ausdruck translate steigert sie dann

mit enforce.

--

37) Im alten K. John sagt der französische König: Then I demand Volquessan, Touraine, Maine, Poictiers and Anjou, these five provinces, und der englische König fügt, indem er dies bewilligt, noch unaufgefordert and thirty thousand marks of stipend coin

hinzu.

38) assured, doppelsinnig.

=

sicher, gewiss, und = verlobt. In letzterem ungewöhnlicherem Sinne steht das Wort in Comedy of Errors (A. 3, Sc. 2) call'd me Dro

39) Im alten K. John ist Constanze mit ihrem Sohn bei dieser Scene zugegen.

Her presence would have interrupted much.

Where is she and her son? tell me, who knows.

Lew. She is sad and passionate 40 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,

Which we, God knows, have turn'd another way,

To our own vantage.

If not fill up the measure of her will,
Yet in some measure satisfy her so,
That we shall stop her exclamation.
Go we, as well as haste will suffer us.
To this unlook'd-for unprepared pomp.

[Exeunt all but the Bastard.

The Citizens retire from the walls.

Bast. Mad world! mad kings! mad composition! John, to stop Arthur's title in the whole,

Hath willingly departed with a part;

42

And France, whose armour conscience buckled on,
Whom zeal 43 and charity brought to the field,

As God's own soldier, rounded in the ear

With that same purpose-changer, that sly devil,

4) passionate ist, wer seinem schmerzlichen Affecte (passion) sich hingiebt und demselben in Wort und Geberden Luft macht. So in Sh.'s True Tragedie of Richard Duke of York, der ersten Bearbeitung des Third Part of K. Henry VI.: Tell me, good Madam, | Why is your grace so passionate of late? In demselben Sinne ist auch der Titel der Sh.'schen Gedichtsammlung Passionate Pilgrim zu

fassen.

1) solemnity ist die Hochzeitfeier des Dauphins und der Lady Blanch, die in Angers begangen werden soll. Dieselbe bezeichnet er nachher mit unprepared pomp.

42) Wortspiel zwischen part Theil eines Ganzen, und to depart with = etwas fahren lassen, sich von etwas trennen.

+3) seal = religiöser Eifer, Frömmigkeit. Vgl. Anm. 25 dieser Sc.

44) to round in the ear Jemandem in's Ohr raunen, wird, wie to whisper mit dem Accusativ der Person construirt: jener selbige Vorsatzänderer, jener schlaue Teufel, der vom Bastard humoristisch personificirte Commodity von Frankreich heimlich beschwatzt.

France.

=

Eigennutz, hat den König rounded ist Particip und Apposition zu

That broker that still breaks the pate of faith, 45
That daily break-vow, he that wins of all,

Of kings, of beggars, old men, young men, maids,
Who 46 having no external thing to lose

But the word maid,

cheats the poor maid of that; That smooth-faced gentleman, tickling commodity, 47 Commodity, the bias of the world;

The world, who of itself is peised well,
Made to run even, upon even ground,
Till this advantage, this vile-drawing bias,
This sway of motion, this commodity,
Makes it take head from all indifferency, 4
From all direction, purpose, course, intent:
And this same bias, this commodity,

50

This bawd, this broker, 49 this all-changing word,
Clapp'd on the outward eye of fickle France,
Hath drawn him from his own determin'd aid,
From a resolv'd and honourable war,
To a most base and vile-concluded peace.
And why rail I on this commodity?

But for because 51 he hath not woo'd me yet.
Not that I have the power to clutch my hand,
When his fair angels 52 would salute my palm;
But for my hand, as unattempted yet,

Like a poor beggar, raileth on the rich.

45) Scherzhafte Erweiterung des einfachen break faith, gleichsam: der Treue den Schädel spalten.

46) Die Construction ist anakoluthisch, da sich who zunächst auf maids bezieht, und dann mit einem bei Sh. nicht seltenen Wechsel zu cheats zu ergänzen ist, in Bezug auf that daily break-vow etc.

47) Der Vortheil oder Eigennutz weiss die Lente zu kitzeln, sie angenehm aufzuregen. bias of the world heisst er, weil er der Welt eine verkehrte Richtung giebt, sie aus ihrem natürlichen Gleichgewichte bringt. Im Folgenden wird die Welt mit einer rollenden Kugel verglichen. to peise im Gleichgewicht halten.

48) dass die Welt abfällt von aller Unparteilichkeit, allem Gleichgewicht. 49) broker ist in Sh.'s Sprache dem bawd synonym,

Parole.

Kuppler.

word = Losung,

50) hat ihn der Unterstützung Arthur's, zu der er fest entschlossen war, abspenstig gemacht. selbständig, ihm eigenthümlich.

own =

51) da for auch allein because gebraucht wird, so steht eins von beiden bier überflüssig. In der folgenden Zeile tritt that an die Stelle von because: nicht weil ich stark genug bin, meine Hand fest zuzumachen, wenn u. s. w. Endlich folgt for weil, noch einmal allein but for my hand etc.

=

52) angel Engel, und eine Goldmünze zum Werthe von zehn Schillingen, die genauer erwähnt wird in Merchant of Venice (A. 2, Sc. 7) they have in England ¦ A coin that bears the figure of an angel || stumped in gold Dasselbe Wortspiel

kehrt in A. 3, Sc. 3 wieder.