That, like a lion fofter'd up at hand,

It may lie gently at the foot of peace,
And be no further harmful than in fhew.

Lewis. Your grace fhall pardon me, I will not back: I am too high-born to be property'd,

To be a fecondary at controul,

Or useful ferving-man, and inftrument,

To any fovereign ftate throughout the world.
Your breath firft kindled the dead coal of war,
Between this chaftis'd kingdom and myself,
And brought in matter that should feed this fire
And now 'tis far too huge to be blown out,
With that fame weak wind which enkindled it.
You taught me how to know the face of right,
Acquainted me with intereft to this land,
Yea, thrust this enterprize into my heart;
And come ye now to tell me, John hath made
His peace with Rome? What is that peace to me?
I, by the honour of my marriage-bed,
After young Arthur, claim this land for mine
And now it is half-conquer'd muft I back,
Because that John hath made his peace with Rome?
Am I Rome's flave? What penny hath Rome borne,
What men provided, what munition sent,

To underprop this action? Is't not I
That undergo this charge? Who else but I,
And fuch as to my claim are liable,

Sweat in this bufinefs, and maintain this war?
Have I not heard thefe iflanders fhout out,
Vive le roy! as I have bank'd their towns 3?
Have I not here the beft cards for the game,
To win this eafy match, play'd for a crown?
And fhall I now give o'er the yielded set ?
No, on my foul, it never fhall be faid.

Pand. You look but on the outside of this work.

3 — as I have bank'd their towns ?] Bank'd their towns means, thrown up fortifications, or rather entrenchments, before their towns. STEEVENS.

Lewis. Outfide or infide, I will not return
Till my attempt fo much be glorify'd,
As to my ample hope was promifed,
Before I drew this gallant head of war,
And cull'd these fiery fpirits from the world,
To outlook conqueft, and to win renown
Even in the jaws of danger, and of death.

[Trumpet founds. What lufty trumpet thus doth fummon us?

Enter Faulconbridge.

Fanke. According to the fair play of the world,
Let me have audience. I am fent to speak,
My holy lord of Milan, from the king:
I come to learn how you have dealt for him:
And, as you answer, I do know the scope
And warrant limited unto my tongue.

Pand. The dauphin is too wilful-oppofite,
And will not temporize with my entreaties:
He flatly fays, he'll not lay down his arms.
Faule. By all the blood that ever fury breath'd,
The youth fays well. Now hear our English king;
For thus his royalty doth fpeak in me.
He is prepar'd; and reafon too he fhould:
This apifh and unmannerly approach,
This harnefs'd mafque, and unadvised revel,
+ This unhair'd fawcinefs, and boyifh troops,
The king doth fmile at; and is well prepar'd
To whip this dwarfish war, thefe pigmy arms,

4 This unheard facinefs, and boyish troops,] Thus the printed copies in general; but unheard is an epithet of very little force or meaning here; befides, let us obferve how it is coupled. Faulconbridge is fneering at the dauphin's invafion, as an unadvised enterprize, favouring of youth and indifcretion; the refult of childifhnefs, and unthinking rafhnefs: and he feems altogether to dwell on this character of it, by calling his preparation boyish troops, dwarfish war, pigmy arms, &c. which, according to my emendation, fort very well with unbair'd, i. e. unbearded fawcinefs. THEOBALD.

From out the circle of his territories.

That hand which had the strength even at your door,
To cudgel you, and make you take the hatch 5;
To dive like buckets in concealed wells;
To crouch in litter of your stable-planks;
To lie, like pawns, lock'd up in chefts and trunks;
To hug with swine; to feek sweet safety out,
In vaults and prifons; and to thrill, and shake,
Even at the crying of your nation's crow,
Thinking his voice an armed Englishman ;-
Shall that victorious hand be feebled here,
That in your chambers gave you chastisement?
No: know, the gallant monarch is in arms,
And like an eagle o'er his airy towers,
To foufe the annoyance that comes near his neft.
And you degenerate, you ingrate revolts,
You bloody Nero's, ripping up the womb

Of

your dear mother England, blush for shame: For your own ladies, and pale-vifag'd maids, Like Amazons, come tripping after drums; Their thimbles into armed gauntlets change, Their needles to lances, and their gentle hearts To fierce and bloody inclination.

Lewis. There end thy brave, and turn thy face in

peace;

We grant, thou canft out-fcold us: fare thee well; We hold our time too precious to be spent

With fuch a brabler.

Pand. Give me leave to speak.

Faulc. No, I will speak.

Lewis. We will attend to neither.

Strike up the drums; and let the tongue of war

Plead for our intereft, and our being here.

5

Faule. Indeed, your drums, being beaten, will cry

out;

take the hatch;] To take the hatch, is to leap the batch. To take a hedge or a ditch is the hunter's phrase.

STEEVENS.

And

And fo fhall you, being beaten : do but start
An echo with the clamour of thy drum,
And even at hand a drum is ready brac'd,
That fhall reverberate all as loud as thine.
Sound but another, and another fhall,
As loud as thine, rattle the welkin's ear,

And mock the deep-mouth'd thunder:-for at hand
(Not trufting to this halting legate here,
Whom he hath us'd rather for sport than need)
Is warlike John; and in his forehead fits
A bare-ribb'd death; whofe office is this day
To feast upon whole thousands of the French.
Lewis. Strike up our drums, to find this danger out.
Faule. And thou fhalt find it, dauphin, do not
[Exeunt.

doubt.

Changes to a field of battle.

Alarms. Enter king John and Hubert.

K. John. How goes the day with us? oh, tell me, Hubert.

Hub. Badly, I fear how fares your majefty? K. John. This fever, that hath troubled me fo long, Lies heavy on me. Oh, my heart is fick!

Enter a messenger.

Mef. My lord, your valiant kinfman, Faulconbridge,

Defires

your majefty to leave the field,

And fend him word by me which way you go.

K. John. Tell him, toward Swinstead, to the abbey there.

Mef. Be of good comfort; for the great supply, That was expected by the dauphin here, Are wreck'd three nights ago on Goodwin fands. This news was brought to Richard but even now. The French fight coldly, and retire themselves.

G3

K. John.

K. John. Ah me! this tyrant fever burns me up, And will not let me welcome this good news. Set on toward Swinstead: to my litter strait; Weakness poffeffeth me, and I am faint,

SCENE IV.

Changes to the French camp.

Enter Salifoury, Pembroke, and Bigot.

[Exeunt.

Sal. I did not think the king fo ftor'd with friends, Pemb. Up once again; put fpirit in the French: If they mifcarry, we miscarry too.

Sal. That mii-begotten devil, Faulconbridge, In fpight of spight, alone upholds the day.

Pemb. They fay, king John, fore fick, hath left the

field.

Enter Melun wounded, and led by foldiers.

Melun. Lead me to the revolts of England here. Sal. When we were happy we had other names. Pemb. It is the count Melun.

Sal. Wounded to death.

Mel. Fly, noble English, you are bought and fold; 2 Unthread the rude eye of rebellion,

And welcome home again difcarded faith.
Seek out king John, and fall before his feet;
For if the French be lords of this loud day,

2 Unthread the rude eye of rebellion,] Though all the copies concur in this reading, how poor is the metaphor of unthreading the eye of a needle? And befides, as there is no mention made of a needle, how remote and obfcure is the allufion without it? The text, as I have reftored it, is easy and natural; and it is the mode of expreffion, which our author is every where fond of, to tread and untread, the way, path, feps, &c.

THEOBALD. The metaphor is certainly harfh, but I do not think the paffage corrupted. JOHNSON.

Shakespeare elfewhere ufes the fame expreffion, threading dark cy'd night. STEEVENS,

He