Such things become the hatch and brood of time;
And by the necessary form of this,

King Richard might create a perfect guels,
That great Northumberland, then falfe to him,
Would of that feed grow to a greater falseness,
Which fhould not find a ground to root upon,
Unless on you.

K. Henry. Are these things then neceffities?
Then let us meet them like neceffities;

And that fame word even now cries out on us:
They fay, the Bishop and Northumberland.
Are fifty thousand strong.

War. It cannot be:

Rumour doth double, like the voice and echo,
The numbers of the fear'd. Please it your Grace
To go to bed. Upon my life, my lord,
The Pow'rs, that you already have fent forth,
Shall bring this prize in very eafily.

To comfort you the more, I have receiv'd
A certain inftance that Glendower is dead.
Your Majefty hath been this fortnight ill,
And these unfeafon'd hours perforce must add
Unto your fickness.

K. Henry. I will take your counsel :

And were thefe inward wars once out of hand,
We would, dear lords, unto the Holy Land. [Exeunt.

SCENE changes to Justice Shallow's Seat in Gloucefterfhire.

Enter Shallow and Silence, Juftices; with Mouldy, Shadow, Wart, Feeble, and Bull-calf.

OME on, come on, come on; give me

Shal. COME

your hand, Sir; an early stirrer, by the rood.

And how doth my good coufin Silence?

Sil. Good morrow, good coufin Shallow.

Shal. And how doth my coufin, your bed-fellow? and your fairest daughter, and mine, my god-daughter Ellen?

I i4

Sil.

Sil. Alas, a black ouzel, coufin Shallow.

Shal By yea and nay, Sir, I dare fay, my coufin William is become a good scholar: he is at Oxford ftill, is he not?

Sil. Indeed, Sir, to my coft.

Shal. He must then to the Inns of Court shortly: I was once of Clement's-Inn; where, I think, they will talk of mad Shallow yet.

Sil. You were call'd lufty Shallow then, coufin.

Shal. I was call'd any thing, and I would have done any thing, indeed, too, and roundly too. There was I, and little John Doit of Staffordshire, and black George Bare, and Francis Pickbone, and Will Squele a Cot'swold man, you had not four fuch fwinge-bucklers in all the Inns of Court again: and I may fay to you, we' knew where the Bona-Roba's were, and had the best of them all at commandment. Then was Jack Falstaff, (now Sir John) a boy, and page to Thomas Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk.

Sil. This Sir John, coufin, that comes hither anon about Soldiers?

Shal. The fame Sir John, the very fame: I faw him break Schoggan's head at the Court-gate, when he was a crack, not thus high; and the very fame day I did fight with one Sampfon Stockfish, a fruiterer, behind Grays-Inn. O the mad days that I have spent! and to fee how many of mine old acquaintance are dead? Sil. We fhall all follow, cousin.

Shal Certain, 'tis certain, very fure, very fure: death (as the Pfalmift faith) is certain to all, all thall die. How a good yoke of Bullocks at Stamford Fair? Sil. Truly, coufin, I was not there.

Shal. Death is certain. Is old Double of your town living yet?

Sil. Dead, Sir.

Shal. Dead! fee, fee, he drew a good bow: and dead? he shot a fine shoot. John of Gaunt loved him well, and betted much mony on his head. Dead! he would have clapt in the clowt at twelve score, and carried you a fore-hand fhaft a fourteen and fourteen and

༣

a half, that it would have done a man's heart good to fee. How a fcore of ewes now?

Sil. Thereafter as they be: a score of good ewes may be worth ten pounds.

Shal. And is old Double dead?

Enter Bardolph, and Page.

Sil. Here come two of Sir John Falftaff's men, as Į think.

Shal. Good morrow, honeft gentlemen.

Bard. I beseech you, which is Justice Shallow?

Shal. I am Robert Shallow, Sir, a poor Efquire of this County, one of the King's Juftices of the peace: what is your good pleafure with me?

Bard. My captain, Sir, commends him to you: my captain Sir John Falstaff; a tall gentleman, by heav'n! and a moft gallant leader.

Shal. He greets me well: Sir, I knew him a good back-fword man. How doth the good Knight? may I ask, how my lady his wife doth?

Bard. Sir, pardon, a foldier is better accommodated than with a wife.

Shal. It is well faid, Sir; and it is well faid, indeed, too: better accommodated it is good, yea, indeed, is it; good phrafes, furely, are, and ever were, very commendable. Accommodated-it comes of accommodo; very good, a good phrase.

Bard. Pardon me, Sir, I have heard the word. Phrafe, call you it? by this day, I know not the phrafe; but I will maintain the word with my fword, to be a foldier-like word, and a word of exceeding good command. Accommodated, that is, when a man is, as they fay, accommodated; or, when a man is, being whereby he may be thought to be accommodated, which is an excellent thing.

Enter Falftaff.

Shal. It is very juft: look, here comes good Sir John. Give me your good hand, give me your Wor

hip's good hand; trust me, you look well, and bear
your years very well. Welcome, good Sir John.
Fal. I am glad to fee you well, good master Robert
Shallow: Mater Sure-card, as I think,

Shal. No, Sir John, it is my cousin Silence; in Commiffion with me.

Fal. Good master Silence, it well befits, you should be of the peace,

Sil. Your good Worship is welcome.

Fal. Fie, this is hot weather, gentlemen; have you
provided me here half a dozen of fufficient men?
Shal. Marry have we, Sir: will you fit?
Fal. Let me fee them, I beseech you.

Shal. Where's the roll? where's the roll? where's the roll? let me fee, let me fee, let me fee: fo, fo, fo, fo: yea, marry, Sir. Ralph Mouldy:- let them appear as I call: let them do fo, let them do fo. Let me fee, where is Mouldy?

Moul. Here, if it please you.

Shal. What think you, Sir John? a good limb'd fellow: young, strong, and of good friends.

Fal. Is thy name Mouldy?

Moul. Yea, if it, please you.

Fal. 'Tis the more time thou wert us'd.

Shal. Ha, ha, ha, moft excellent, i'faith. Things, that are mouldy, lack ufe: very fingular good. Well faid, Sir John, very well faid.

Fal. Prick him.

Moul. I was prickt well enough before, if you could have let me alone: my old dame will be undone now for one to do her husbandry, and her drudgery; you need not to have prickt me, there are other men fitter to go out than I.

Fal. Go to: peace, Mouldy, you fhall go. Mouldy, it is time you were spent.

Moul. Spent?

Shal. Peace, fellow, peace: ftand afide: know you where you are? for the other, Sir John. Let me see: Simon Shadow.

Fal.

Fal. Ay, marry, let me have him to fit under: he's like to be a cold foldier.

Shal. Where's Shadow ?

Shad. Here, Sir.

Fal. Shadow, whofe fon art thou?
Shad. My mother's fon, Sir.

Fal. Thy mother's fon! like enough, and thy fa ther's fhadow: fo the fon of the female is the fhadow of the male: it is often fo, indeed, but not of the father's fubftance.

Shal. Do you like him, Sir John?

Fal. Shadow will ferve for fummer; prick him; for we have a number of shadows do fill up the mufter-book.

Shal. Thomas Wart.

Fal. Where's he?
Wart. Here, Sir.

Fal. Is thy name Wart?

Wart. Yea, Sir.

Fal. Thou art a very ragged wart.

Shal. Shall I prick him down, Sir John?

Fal. It were fuperfluous; for his apparel is built up, on his back, and the whole frame ftands upon pins; prick him no more.

Shal. Ha, ha, ha, you can do it, Sir; you can do it: I commend you well. Francis Feeble.

Feeble. Here, Sir.

Fal. What trade art thou, Feeble?
Feeble. A woman's tailor, Sir.

Shal. Shall I prick him, Sir?

Fal. You may: but if he had been a man's tailor, he would have prick'd you. Wilt thou make as many holes in an enemy's battel, as thou haft done in a woman's petticoat?

Feeble. I will do my good will, Sir; you can have no

more.

Fal. Well faid, good woman's tailor; well faid, courageous Feeble: thou wilt be as valiant as the wrathful Dove, or moft magnanimous Moufe, Prick the

woman's