William Shakespeare - The Complete Works

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HENRY THE FOURTH PART 1 Act 1 Scene 2 (Enter Harry Prince of Wales and Sir John Oldcastle) l1l Sir John Now, Hal, what time of day is it, lad? l2l Prince Harry Thou art so fat-witted with drinking of old l3l sack, and unbuttoning thee after supper, and sleeping l4l upon benches after noon, that thou hast forgotten to l5l demand that truly which thou wouldst truly know. l6l What a devil hast thou to do with the time of the day? l7l Unless hours were cups of sack, and minutes capons, l8l and clocks the tongues of bawds, and dials the signs l9l of leaping-houses, and the blessed sun himself a fair l10l hot wench in flame-coloured taffeta, I see no reason l11l why thou shouldst be so superfluous to demand the l12l time of the day. l13l Sir John Indeed you come near me now, Hal, for we that l14l take purses go by the moon and the seven stars, and l15l not ôBy Phoebus, he, that wandÆring knight so fairö. l16l And I prithee, sweet wag, when thou art a king, as l17l God save thy graceùômajestyö I should say, for grace l18l thou wilt have noneù l19l Prince Harry What, none? l20l Sir John No, by my troth, not so much as will serve to l21l be prologue to an egg and butter. l22l Prince Harry Well, how then? Come, roundly, roundly. l23l Sir John Marry then, sweet wag, when thou art king let l24l not us that are squires of the nightÆs body be called l25l thieves of the dayÆs beauty. Let us be ôDianaÆs forestersö, l26l ôgentlemen of the shadeö, ôminions of the moonö, and l27l let men say we be men of good government, being l28l governed, as the sea is, by our noble and chaste mistress l29l the moon, under whose countenance we steal. l30l Prince Harry Thou sayst well, and it holds well too, for l31l the fortune of us that are the moonÆs men doth ebb l32l and flow like the sea, being governed as the sea is by l33l the moon. As for proof now: a purse of gold most l34l resolutely snatched on Monday night, and most l35l dissolutely spent on Tuesday morning; got with l36l swearing ôlay by!ö, and spent with crying ôbring in!ö; l37l now in as low an ebb as the foot of the ladder, and by l38l and by in as high a flow as the ridge of the gallows. l39l Sir John By the Lord, thou sayst true, lad; and is not my l40l Hostess of the tavern a most sweet wench? l41l Prince Harry As the honey of Hybla, my old lad of the l42l castle; and is not a buff jerkin a most sweet robe of l43l durance? l44l Sir John How now, how now, mad wag? What, in thy l45l quips and thy quiddities? What a plague have I to do l46l with a buff jerkin? l47l Prince Harry Why, what a pox have I to do with my l48l Hostess of the tavern? l49l Sir John Well, thou hast called her to a reckoning many l50l a time and oft. l51l Prince Harry Did I ever call for thee to pay thy part? l52l Sir John No, IÆll give thee thy due, thou hast paid all l53l there. l54l Prince Harry Yea, and elsewhere so far as my coin would l55l stretch; and where it would not, I have used my credit. l56l Sir John Yea, and so used it that were it not here apparent l57l that thou art heir apparentùbut I prithee, sweet wag, l58l shall there be gallows standing in England when thou l59l art king, and resolution thus fubbed as it is with the l60l rusty curb of old father Antic the law? Do not thou l61l when thou art king hang a thief. l62l Prince Harry No, thou shalt. l63l Sir John Shall I? O, rare! By the Lord, IÆll be a brave l64l judge! l65l Prince Harry Thou judgest false already. I mean thou l66l shalt have the hanging of the thieves, and so become l67l a rare hangman. l68l Sir John Well, Hal, well; and in some sort it jumps with l69l my humour as well as waiting in the court, I can tell l70l you. l71l Prince Harry For obtaining of suits? l72l Sir John Yea, for obtaining of suits, whereof the hangman l73l hath no lean wardrobe. ÆSblood, I am as melancholy l74l as a gib cat, or a lugged bear. l75l Prince Harry Or an old lion, or a loverÆs lute. l76l Sir John Yea, or the drone of a Lincolnshire bagpipe. l77l Prince Harry What sayst thou to a hare, or the l78l melancholy of Moor-ditch? l79l Sir John Thou hast the most unsavoury similes, and art l80l indeed the most comparative, rascalliest sweet young l81l Prince. But Hal, I prithee trouble me no more with l82l vanity. I would to God thou and I knew where a l83l commodity of good names were to be bought. An old l84l lord of the Council rated me the other day in the street l85l about you, sir, but I marked him not; and yet he talked l86l very wisely, but I regarded him not; and yet he talked l87l wisely, and in the street too. l88l Prince Harry Thou didst well, for wisdom cries out in l89l the streets, and no man regards it. l90l Sir John O, thou hast damnable iteration, and art indeed l91l able to corrupt a saint. Thou hast done much harm l92l upon me, Hal, God forgive thee for it. Before I knew l93l thee, Hal, I knew nothing; and now am I, if a man l94l should speak truly, little better than one of the wicked. l95l I must give over this life, and I will give it over. By the l96l Lord, an I do not, I am a villain. IÆll be damned for l97l never a kingÆs son in Christendom. l98l Prince Harry Where shall we take a purse tomorrow, l99l Jack? l100l Sir John Zounds, where thou wilt, lad! IÆll make one; an l101l I do not, call me villain and baffle me. l102l Prince Harry I see a good amendment of life in thee, l103l from praying to purse-taking. l104l Sir John Why, Hal, Ætis my vocation, Hal. ÆTis no sin for l105l a man to labour in his vocation. (Enter Poins) l106l Poins! Now shall we know if Gadshill have set a match. l107l O, if men were to be saved by merit, what hole in hell l108l were hot enough for him? This is the most omnipotent l109l villain that ever cried ôStand!ö to a true man. l110l Prince Harry Good morrow, Ned. l111l Poins Good morrow, sweet Hal. (To Sir John) What says l112l Monsieur Remorse? What says Sir John, sack-and- l113l sugar Jack? How agrees the devil and thee about thy l114l soul, that thou soldest him on Good Friday last, for a l115l cup of Madeira and a cold caponÆs leg? l116l Prince Harry Sir John stands to his word, the devil shall l117l have his bargain, for he was never yet a breaker of l118l proverbs: he will give the devil his due. l119l Poins (to Sir John) Then art thou damned for keeping thy l120l word with the devil. l121l Prince Harry Else he had been damned for cozening the l122l devil. l123l Poins But my lads, my lads, tomorrow morning by four l124l oÆclock early, at Gads Hill, there are pilgrims going to l125l Canterbury with rich offerings, and traders riding to l126l London with fat purses. I have visors for you all; you l127l have horses for yourselves. Gadshill lies tonight in l128l Rochester. I have bespoke supper tomorrow night in l129l Eastcheap. We may do it as secure as sleep. If you will l130l go, I will stuff your purses full of crowns; if you will l131l not, tarry at home and be hanged. l132l Sir John Hear ye, Edward, if I tarry at home and go not, l133l IÆll hang you for going. l134l Poins You will, chops? l135l Sir John Hal, wilt thou make one? l136l Prince Harry Who, I rob? I a thief? Not I, by my faith. l137l Sir John ThereÆs neither honesty, manhood, nor good l138l fellowship in thee, nor thou camest not of the blood l139l royal, if thou darest not stand for ten shillings. l140l Prince Harry Well then, once in my days IÆll be a l141l madcap. l142l Sir John Why, thatÆs well said. l143l Prince Harry Well, come what will, IÆll tarry at home. l144l Sir John By the Lord, IÆll be a traitor then, when thou l145l art king. l146l Prince Harry I care not. l147l Poins Sir John, I prithee leave the Prince and me alone. l148l I will lay him down such reasons for this adventure l149l that he shall go. l150l Sir John Well, God give thee the spirit of persuasion and l151l him the ears of profiting, that what thou speakest may l152l move and what he hears may be believed, that the true l153l prince may, for recreationÆ sake, prove a false thief; for l154l the poor abuses of the time want countenance. Farewell. l155l You shall find me in Eastcheap. l156l Prince Harry Farewell, the latter spring; farewell, All- l157l hallown summer. (Exit Sir John) l158l Poins Now, my good sweet honey lord, ride with us l159l tomorrow. I have a jest to execute that I cannot manage l160l alone. Oldcastle, Harvey, Russell, and Gadshill shall rob l161l those men that we have already waylaidùyourself and l162l I will not be thereùand when they have the booty, if l163l you and I do not rob them, cut this head off from my l164l shoulders. l165l Prince Harry But how shall we part with them in setting l166l forth? l167l Poins Why, we will set forth before or after them and l168l appoint them a place of meeting, wherein it is at our l169l pleasure to fail. And then will they adventure upon the l170l exploit themselves, which they shall have no sooner l171l achieved but weÆll set upon them. l172l Prince Harry Ay, but Ætis like that they will know us by l173l our horses, by our habits, and by every other l174l appointment, to be ourselves. l175l Poins Tut, our horses they shall not seeùIÆll tie them in l176l the wood; our visors we will change after we leave l177l them; and, sirrah, I have cases of buckram for the l178l nonce, to immask our noted outward garments. l179l Prince Harry But I doubt they will be too hard for us. l180l Poins Well, for two of them, I know them to be as true- l181l bred cowards as ever turned back; and for the third, l182l if he fight longer than he sees reason, IÆll forswear l183l arms. The virtue of this jest will be the incomprehensible l184l lies that this same fat rogue will tell us when we meet l185l at supper: how thirty at least he fought with, what l186l wards, what blows, what extremities he endured; and l187l in the reproof of this lives the jest. l188l Prince Harry Well, IÆll go with thee. Provide us all things l189l necessary, and meet me tomorrow night in Eastcheap; l190l there IÆll sup. Farewell. l191l Poins Farewell, my lord. (Exit) l192l Prince Harry I know you all, and will a while uphold l193l The unyoked humour of your idleness. l194l Yet herein will I imitate the sun, l195l Who doth permit the base contagious clouds l196l To smother up his beauty from the world, l197l That when he please again to be himself, l198l Being wanted he may be more wondered at l199l By breaking through the foul and ugly mists l200l Of vapours that did seem to strangle him. l201l If all the year were playing holidays, l202l To sport would be as tedious as to work; l203l But when they seldom come, they wished-for come, l204l And nothing pleaseth but rare accidents. l205l So when this loose behaviour I throw off l206l And pay the debt I never promisΦd, l207l By how much better than my word I am, l208l By so much shall I falsify menÆs hopes; l209l And like bright metal on a sullen ground, l210l My reformation, glittÆring oÆer my fault, l211l Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes l212l Than that which hath no foil to set it off. l213l IÆll so offend to make offence a skill, l214l Redeeming time when men think least I will. (Exit)