As for words, whose greatness answers words,
Let this my sword report what speech forbears. 12

Cade. By my valour, the most complete champion that ever I heard. Steel, if thou turn the edge, or cut not out the burly-boned clown in chines of beef ere thou sleep in thy sheath, I beseech Jove 13 on my knees, thou mayest be turned to hobnails. [They fight. CADE falls.] O! I am slain. Famine, and no other, hath slain me: let ten thousand devils come against me, and give me but the ten meals 14 I have lost, and I 'd defy them all. Wither, garden; and be henceforth a burying-place to all that do dwell in this house, because the unconquered 15 soul of Cade is fled.

Iden. Is 't Cade that I have slain, that monstrous traitor?

Sword, I will hallow thee for this thy deed,

And hang thee 16 o'er my tomb, when I am dead:
Ne'er shall this blood be wiped from thy point,

But thou shalt wear it as a herald's coat,

To emblaze the honour that thy master got.

Cade. Iden, farewell; and be proud of thy victory. Tell Kent from me, she hath lost her best man, and exhort all the world to be cowards, for I, that never feared any, am vanquished by famine, not by valour.

Iden. How much thou wrong'st me, 17 heaven be my judge.

Die, damned wretch, the curse of her that bare thee! 18

And as I thrust thy body in with my sword,
So wish I, I might thrust thy soul to hell.
Hence will I drag thee headlong by the heels
Unto a dunghill, which shall be thy grave,
And there cut off thy most ungracious head;
Which I will bear in triumph to the king,
Leaving thy trunk for crows to feed upon.

[Dies.

[Exit, dragging out the body.

12) Statt grosse, prahlerische Worte mit grossen Worten zu erwidern, soll dieses Schwert berichten, was die Rede verschweigt. Den ersten dieser beiden Verse, der metrisch unvollständig ist, wollte M. Mason mit As for mere words vervollständigen; frühere Hgg. lasen ebenso unsicher As for more words.

13) So die Fol.

Zu

Viele Hgg. entlehnen aus den beiden ersten Qs. God für Jove. der affectirt pomphaften Anrede Cade's an seinen Stahl passt Jove vollkommen gut, ohne dass man anzunehmen braucht, dass die Rücksicht auf die Theatercensur, welche keinen Missbrauch des göttlichen Namens duldete, die Umänderung herbeigeführt. 14) ten meals, d. h. zwei Mahlzeiten täglich, da er in fünf Tagen nichts gegessen. 15) unconquered unüberwindlich, unbesieglich, nach dem Sh.'schen Gebrauch solcher Bildungen, nicht gerade

=

unbesiegt.

16) d. h. ich will Dich über meinem Grabe aufhängen lassen.

17) Nach Johnson's Erklärung besteht das Unrecht darin, dass Cade meint, Iden sei auf seinen Sieg stolz; nach Ritson's Meinung darin, dass Cade erklärt, er sei durch Hunger, nicht durch Iden's Tapferkeit bezwungen. Mit ersterer Deutung steht Iden's vorhergehende Rede in Widerspruch.

18) her that bare thee ist vielleicht nicht Cade's leibliche Mutter, sondern Kent, das Land, das ihn gebar, und zu dessen Fluch er geworden wår. Dann bezögen sich Iden's Worte auf Cade's vorhergehende: Tell Kent from me, she hath lost her best man.

ACT V.

SCENE I.

The Same. Fields between Dartford and Blackheath.

The King's Camp on one side. On the other, enter YORK attended, with drum and colours; his Forces at some distance.

York. From Ireland thus comes York, to claim his right,

And pluck the crown from feeble Henry's head:

Ring, bells, aloud; burn, bonfires, clear and bright,

To entertain great England's lawful king.

Ah, sancta majestas! who would not buy thee dear?

Let them obey, that know not how to rule;

This hand was made to handle nought but gold:

I cannot give due action. to my words,
Except a sword, or sceptre, balance it. 1

A sceptre shall it have, have I a soul, 2

On which I'll toss the flower-de-luce of France.

Enter BUCKINGHAM.

Whom have we here? Buckingham, to disturb me?
The king hath sent him, sure: I must dissemble.

Buck. York, if thou meanest well, I greet thee well.
York. Humphrey of Buckingham, I accept thy greeting.

Art thou a messenger, or come of pleasure?

Buck. A messenger from Henry, our dread liege,
To know the reason of these arms in peace;
Or why, thou being a subject as I am,
Against thy oath and true allegiance sworn,
Shouldst raise so great a power without his leave,
Or dare to bring thy force so near the court.

York. Scarce can I speak, my choler is so great.

O! I could hew up rocks, and fight with flint,

I am so angry at these abject terms;

1) Da it sich auf das vorhergehende this hand beziehen muss und der dazwischen stehende Vers diese Verbindung unklar macht, so wäre vielleicht It cannot für I cannot zu lesen

2) wenn ich eine Seele habe, so wahr ich eine Seele habe, soll meine Hand ein Scepter haben, worauf ich die französischen Lilien stecken will, d. h. wenn ich König von England bin, soll auch Frankreich wieder mein werden. Dieselbe Betheuerung wie

hier findet sich in K. Henry VIII. (A. 4, Sc. 1) Sir, as I have a soul, she is an angel.

And now, like Ajax Telamonius,

On sheep or oxen could I spend my fury.

I am far better born than is the king,
More like a king, more kingly in my thoughts;
But I must make fair weather yet a while,
Till Henry be more weak, and I more strong.
O Buckingham, 3 I pr'ythee, pardon me,

That I have given no answer all this while :
My mind was troubled with deep melancholy.
The cause why I have brought this army hither,
Is, to remove proud Somerset from the king,
Seditious to his grace, and to the state.

Buck. That is too much presumption on thy part;

But if thy arms be to no other end,
The king hath yielded unto thy demand:

The duke of Somerset is in the Tower.

York. Upon thine honour, is he prisoner?

Buck. Upon mine honour, he is prisoner.

York. Then, Buckingham, I do dismiss my powers.
Soldiers, I thank you all; disperse yourselves:
Meet me to-morrow in Saint George's field,
You shall have pay, and every thing you wish.

And let my sovereign, virtuous Henry,

5

Command my eldest son, nay, all my sons,

As pledges of my fealty and love,

I'll send them all, as willing as I live:

Lands, goods, horse, armour, any thing I have

Is his to use, so Somerset may die.

Buck. York, I commend this kind submission:

We twain will go into his highness' tent.

Enter King HENRY, attended.

K. Hen. Buckingham, doth York intend no harm to us,

That thus he marcheth with thee arm in arm?

York. In all submission and humility,

York doth present himself unto your highness.

K. Hen. Then what intend these forces thou dost bring?

York. To heave the traitor Somerset from hence;

And fight against that monstrous rebel, Cade,

Who since I heard to be discomfited. 6

3) Das O vor Buckingham ergänzt die zweite Fol.

[Aside.

4) Somerset, der aufrührerisch gesinnt ist gegen die Majestät des Königs und gegen seine Herrschaft.

5) Vgl. A. 4, Sc. 8, Anm. 3.

6) von dem ich seitdem vernommen, dass er eine Niederlage erlitt.

Enter IDEN, with CADE's Head.

Iden. If one so rude, and of so mean condition,

May pass into the presence of a king,

Lo! I present your grace a traitor's head,

The head of Cade, whom I in combat slew.,

K. Hen. The head of Cade?

0! let me view his visage being dead,

Great God, how just art thou!

That living wrought me such exceeding trouble.

Tell me, my friend, art thou the man that slew him?
Iden. I was, an 't like your majesty.

K. Hen. How art thou call'd, and what is thy degree?
Iden. Alexander Iden, that 's my name;

A poor esquire of Kent, that loves his king.

Buck. So please it you, my lord, 't were not amiss,

He were created knight for his good service.

K. Hen. Iden, kneel down: [He kneels.] Rise up a knight. We give thee for reward a thousand marks;

And will, that thou henceforth attend on us.

Iden. May Iden live to merit such a bounty,

And never live but true unto his liege.

K. Hen. See, Buckingham! Somerset comes with the queen: Go, bid her hide him quickly from the duke.

Enter Queen MARGARET and SOMERSET.

Q. Mar. For thousand Yorks he shall not hide his head,

But boldly stand, and front him to his face.

York. How now! is Somerset at liberty? Then, York, unloose thy long-imprison'd thoughts, And let thy tongue be equal with thy heart.

Shall I endure the sight of Somerset ?
False king, why hast thou broken faith with me,
Knowing how hardly I can brook abuse?

King did I call thee? no, thou art not king;

Not fit to govern and rule multitudes,

Which dar'st not, no, nor canst not rule a traitor.

That head of thine doth not become a crown;

Thy hand is made to grasp a palmer's staff,

And not to grace an awful princely sceptre.

That gold must round engirt these brows of mine;
Whose smile and frown, like to Achilles' spear,

Is able with the change to kill and cure.

1) Jene goldene Krone, die Du trägst.

8

*) to kill bezieht sich auf frown, to cure auf smile, und Beides sollte demgemäss umgestellt werden.

Here is a hand to hold a sceptre up,

And with the same to act controlling laws.9

Give place: by heaven, thou shalt rule no more

O'er him whom heaven created for thy ruler.

Som. O monstrous traitor! I arrest thee, York,

Of capital treason 'gainst the king and crown.

Obey, audacious traitor: kneel for grace.

York. Wouldst have me kneel? first let me ask of these, 10

If they can brook I bow a knee to man?
Sirrah, call in my sons 11 to be my bail;

I know, ere they will have me go to ward,

They'll pawn their swords for my enfranchisement.

Q. Mar. Call hither Clifford; bid him come amain,

To say,
if that the bastard boys of York
Shall be the surety for their traitor father.

York. O! blood-bespotted Neapolitan, 12
Outcast of Naples, England's bloody scourge,
The sons of York, thy betters in their birth,
Shall be their father's bail; and bane 13 to those

That for my surety will refuse the boys.

[Exit an Attendant.

Enter EDWARD and RICHARD PLANTAGENET, with Forces, at one side; at the other, with Forces also, old CLIFFORD and his Son.

See, where they come: I'll warrant they'll make it good.
Q. Mar. And here comes Clifford, to deny their bail.
Clif. Health and all happiness to my lord the king!
York. I thank thee, Clifford: say, what news with thee?

Nay, do not fright us with an angry look:

We are thy sovereign, Clifford, kneel again;
For thy mistaking so, 14 we pardon thee.

Clif. This is my king, York: I do not mistake e;

[Kneels.

10) these, Theobald's Emendation für thee in der Fol., ist wahrscheinlich eine drohende Hinweisung auf die anwesenden Irischen Truppen unter York's Botmässigkeit. Andere beziehen these auf York's Söhne, die jedoch erst nachher erwähnt werden und viel später erst erscheinen. Tyrwhitt verstand unter these gar die Kniee Yorks.

11) sons corrigirt die zweite Fol. das son (sonne) der ersten; ebenso corrigirt dieselbe zwei Zeilen weiter for my enfranchisement das of my etc. der ersten Fol.

12) So nennt er die Königin mit Hohn als Tochter eines Titularkönigs von Neapel.

13) bane und bail sind auch lautlich einander gegenüber gestellt.

14) Dass Du so einen Missgriff begingst, indem Du, statt vor mir, vor Heinrich Dein Knie beugtest, verzeihen wir Dir.