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Assure yourselves, will never be unkind:
And so, with thanks, and pardon to you all,
I do dismiss you to your several countries.
All. God save the king! God save the king!

Enter a MESSENGER.

*Mes. Please it your grace to be advértised,
The duke of York is newly come from Ireland:
And with a puissant and a mighty power,
Of Gallowglasses, and stout Kernes,*
Is marching hitherward in proud array;
And still proclaimeth, as he comes along,
His aims are only to remove from thee
The duke of Somerset, whom he terms a traitor.

K. Hen. Thus stands my state, 'twixt Cade and York distress'd;
Like to a ship, that, having escaped a tempest,
Is straightway calm'd, and boarded with a pirate:
But now is Cade driven back, his men dispersed;
And now is York in arms, to second him.-
I pray thee, Buckingham, go and meet him;
And ask him, what's the reason of these arms.
Tell him, I'll send duke Edmund to the Tower ;-
And Somerset, we will commit thee thither,
Until his army be dismiss'd from him.

Som. My lord,

I'll yield myself to prison willingly,
Or unto death, to do my country good.

K. Hen. In any case, be not too rough in terms;
For he is fierce, and cannot brook hard language.
Buck. I will, my lord; and doubt not so to deal

As all things shall redound unto your good.

K. Hen. Come, wife, let's in, and learn to govern better; For yet may England curse my wretched reign.

SCENE X. - Kent. IDEN'S Garden.

Enter CADE.

[Exeunt.

Cade. Fie on ambition! Fie on myself; that have a sword, and yet am ready to famish! These five days have I hid me in these woods; and durst not peep out, for all the country is layed for me; but now am I so hungry, that if I might have a lease of my life for a thousand years, I could stay no longer. Wherefore, on a brick wall have I climbed into this garden; to see if I can eat grass, or pick a sallet another while, which is not amiss to cool a man's stomach this hot weather. And, I think, this word sallet was born to do me good for, many a time, but for a sallet,‡ my brain-pan had been cleft with a brown-bill; and, many a time, when I have been dry, and bravely marching, it hath served me

* Heavy and light-armed soldiers.

A kind of helmet.

† Only just now.

instead of a quart-pot to drink in; and now the word sallet must serve me to feed on.

Enter IDEN, with Servants.

Iden. Lord, who would live turmoiled in the court,

And may enjoy such quiet walks as these,
This small inheritance, my father left me,
Contenteth me, and is worth a monarchy.
I seek not to wax great by other's waning;
Or gather wealth, I care not with what envy;
Sufficeth, that I have maintains my state,
And sends the poor well pleased from my gate.

Cade. Here's the lord of the soil come to seize me for a stray, for entering his fee-simple without leave. Ah, villain, thou wilt betray me, and get a thousand crowns of the king for carrying my head to him; but I'll make thee eat iron like an ostrich, and swallow my sword like a great pin, ere thou and I part.

Iden. Why, rude companion, whatsoe'er thou be,
I know thee not; why then should I betray thee?
Is't not enough to break into my garden,
And, like a thief, to come to rob my grounds,
Climbing my walls, in spite of me the owner,
But thou wilt brave me with these saucy terms?

Cade. Brave thee? Ay, by the best blood that ever was broach'd, and beard thee too. Look on me well: I have eat no meat these five days; yet, come thou and thy five men, and if I do not leave you all as dead as a door-nail, I pray God, I may never eat grass more.

Iden. Nay, it shall ne'er be said, while England stands,
That Alexander Iden, an esquire of Kent,
Took odds to combat a poor famish'd man.
Oppose thy steadfast-gazing eyes to mine,
See if thou canst outface me with thy looks.
Set limb to limb, and thou art far the lesser ;

Thy hand is but a finger to my fist;

Thy leg a stick compared with this truncheon;
My foot shall fight with all the strength thou hast;
And if mine arm be heaved in the air,

Thy grave is digg'd already in the earth.

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

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 God on my knees, thou mayst be turn'd 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 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 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 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 fear'd any, am vanquish'd by famine, not by valour. [Dies.

Iden. How much thou wrong'st me, * heaven be my judge.
Die, damned wretch, the curse of her that bare thee!
And as I thrust thy body in with my sword,
So wish I, I might thrust thy soul in 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.

[Exit, dragging out the Body.

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.†
A sceptre shall it have, have I a soul;
On which I'll toss the 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;

* In supposing that I am proud of my victory.
† Balance my hand

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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 [aside]. 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;
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 awhile,
Till Henry be more weak, and I more strong.
O Buckingham, 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.

wish.

Soldiers, I thank you all; disperse yourselves;
Meet me to-morrow, in St. George's field,
You shall have pay, and everything you 1 And let my sovereign, virtuous Henry,
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, anything 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 to harm us,

That thus he marcheth with thee arm in arm?
York. In all submission and humility,

York doth present himself unto your highness.

[Aside.

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.

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?-Great God, how just art thou!

O, let me view his visage being dead,

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, 'twere 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.
Here is a hand to hold a sceptre up,
And with the same to act controlling laws.
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.

Exit an ATTENDANT

York. Wouldst have me kneel? first let me ask of these,
If they can brook I bow a knee to man.-
Sirrah, call in my sons 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.

* Custody, confinement.

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