John, to top Arthur's Title in the whole, Hath willingly departed with a part:
And France, whofe armour Confcience buckled on, Whom Zeal and Charity brought to the field, As God's own foldier, rounded in the ear With that fame purpose-changer, that fly devil, That broker, that ftill breaks the pate of faith, That daily break-vow, he that wins of all, Of Kings, of beggars, old men, young men, maids, Who having no external thing to lofe
But the word Maid, cheats the poor maid of that; That smooth-fac'd gentleman, tickling Commodity,- Commodity, the biafs of the world,
The world, which of itself is poised well, Made to run even, upon even ground; Till this advantage, this vile-drawing biafs, This fway of motion, this Commodity, Makes it take head from all indifferency, From all direction, purpose, course, intent. And this fame biafs, this Commodity,
This bawd, this broker, this all-changing word, Clapt on the outward eye of fickle France, Hath drawn him from his own determin'd aid, From a refolv'd and honourable war,
To a most bafe and vile-concluded peace. And why rail I on this Commodity ? But for because he hath not wooed me yet: Not that I have the power to clutch my hand, When his fair angels would falute my palm; But that my hand, as unattempted yet, Like a poor beggar, raileth on the rich. Well, while I am a beggar, I will rail; And fay, there is no fin but to be rich: And being rich, my virtue then fhall be, To fay, there is no vice, but beggary. Since Kings break faith upon commodity, Gain, be my lord; for I will worship thee!
The French King's Pavilion.
Enter Conftance, Arthur, and Salisbury.
NONE to be marry'd! gone to fwear a peace! Falfe blood to false blood join'd! Gone to be friends!
Shall Lewis have Blanch, and Blanch those provinces? It is not fo, thou haft mis-spoke, mif-heard, Be well advis'd, tell o'er thy tale again, It cannot be; thou doft but fay, 'tis fo. I truft, I may not truft thee; for thy word Is but the vain breath of a common man : Believe me, I do not believe thee, man; I have a King's oath to the contrary. Thou shalt be punish'd for thus frighting me, For I am fick, and capable of fears;
Oppreft with wrongs, and therefore full of fears: A widow, hufbandlefs, fubject to fears; A woman, naturally born to fears,
And, tho' thou now confefs thou didst but jest, With my vext fpirits I cannot take a truce, But they will quake and tremble all this day. What dost thou mean by fhaking of thy head? Why dost thou look fo fadly on my fon? What means that hand upon that breast of thine? Why holds thine eye that lamentable rheum, Like a proud river peering o'er his bounds? Be thefe fad fighs confirmers of thy words? Then speak again, not all thy former tale, But this one word, whether thy tale be true. Sal. As true, as, I believe, you think them false,
That give you caufe to prove my faying true.
Conft. Oh, if thou teach me to believe this forrow, Teach thou this forrow how to make me die; And let belief and life encounter fo,
As doth the fury of two defp'rate men, Which in the very meeting, fall and die. Lewis wed Blanch! O boy, then where art thou? France friend with England! what becomes of me? Fellow, be gone, I cannot brook thy fight: This news hath made thee a most ugly man. Sal. What other harm have I, good lady, done, But spoke the harm that is by others done? Conft. Which harm within itself so heinous is, As it makes harmful all that speak of it.
Arth. I do befeech you, mother, be content. Conft. If thou, that bidft me be content, wert grim, Ugly, and fland'rous to thy mother's womb, Full of unpleafing blots, and fightless stains, Lame, foolish, crooked, fwart, prodigious, 3 Patch'd with foul moles, and eye-offending marks; I would not care, I then would be content: For then I fhould not love thee: no, nor thou Become thy great birth, nor deserve a crown. But thou art fair, and at thy birth, dear boy! Nature and fortune join'd to make thee great. Of nature's gifts thou may'ft with lillies boaft, And with the half-blown rofe. But fortune, oh! She is corrupted, chang'd, and, won from thee, Adulterates hourly with thine uncle John; And with her golden hand hath pluckt on France To tread down fair refpect of fovereignty, And made his majesty the bawd to theirs. France is a bawd to fortune, and to John; That ftrumpet fortune, that ufurping John!
fightlefs] The poet
ufes fighiles for that which we now exprefs by unfightly, difagreeable to the eyes.
3 Prodigious; that is, portentous, fo deformed as to be taken for a foretoke of evil.
Tell me, thou fellow, is not France forfworn? Envenom him with words; or get thee gone, And leave these woes alone, which I alone Am bound to under-bear.
Sal. Pardon me, Madam,
I may not go without you to the Kings.
Conft. Thou may'ft, thou fhalt, I will not go with thee.
I will inftruct my forrows to be proud;
For Grief is proud, and makes his owner ftout. * To me, and to the State of my great Grief, s Let Kings affemble: for my Grief's fo Grief's fo great,
That no Supporter but the huge firm earth Can hold it up: Here I and Sorrow fit:
Here is my Throne, bid Kings come bow to it. “
5 To me, and to the State of my great Grief,
Let Kings affemble :] In Much ado about nothing, the father of Hero, depreffed by her difgrace, declares himself fo fubdued by grief that a thread may lead him. How is it that grief in Leonato and lady Conftance, produces effects directly oppofite, and yet both agreeable to nature. Sorrow foftens the mind while it is yet warmed by hope, but hardens it when it is congealed by defpair. Diftrefs, while there remains any profpect of relief, is weak and flexible, but when no fuccour remains, is fearless and ftubborn; angry alike at thofe that injure, and at those that do not help; carelefs to pleafe where
[Sits down on the Floor.
SCENE
nothing can be gained, and fearlefs to offend when there is nothing further to be dreaded. Such was this writer's knowledge of the paffions.
bid Kings come low
to it.] I muft here account for the Liberty I have taken to make a Change in the Divifion of the 2d and 3d Aas. In the old Editions, the 2d A was made to end here; though 'tis evident, Lady Conftance here, in her Defpair, feats herself on the Floor: and the must be fuppofed, as I formerly obferved, immediately to rife again, only to go off and end the & decently; or the fat Scene muit fhut her in from the Sight of the Audience, an Abfurdity I cannot wish to accule Shakespeare of. Mr. Gi don and fome other Criticks fancied, that a confiderable Port of the 2d & was loft; and that the
Enter King John, King Philip, Lewis, Blanch, Elinor, Faulconbridge, and Auftria.
K. Philip. 'Tis true, fair daughter; and this blessed day
Ever in France fhall be kept feftival:
To folemnize this day, the glorious fun 7 Stays in his courfe, and plays the alchymist; Turning with fplendor of his precious eye
Chafm began here. I had joined in this Sufpicion of a Scene or two being loft; and unwittingly drew Mr. Pope into this Error. "It seems to be fo, fays he, and "it were to be wish'd the Re- "ftorer (meaning Me,) could fup- σε ply it." To deferve this Great Man's Thanks, I'll venture at the Tafk; and hope to convince my Readers, that nothing is loft; but that I have fupplied the fuf- pected Chasm, only by rectifying the Divifion of the Acts. Upon looking a little more narrowly into the Conflitution of the Play, I am fatisfied that the 3d Act ought to begin with that Scene, which has hitherto been accounted the Laft of the 2d Att: and my Reasons for it are thefe. The Match being concluded, in the Scene before that, betwixt the Dauphin and Blanch, a Mef- fenger is fent for Lady Confiance to K. Philip's Tent, for her to come to St. Mary's Church to the Solemnity. The Princes all go out, as to the Marriage; and the Balerd faying a little behind, to defcant on Intereft and Com- modity, very properly ends the Act. The next Scene then, in
the French King's Tent, brings us Salisbury delivering his Meffage to Conftance, who, refufing to go to the Solemnity, fets herfelf down on the Floor. The whole Train returning from the Church to the French King's Pavilion, Philip expreffes fuch Satisfaction on Occafion of the happy solemnity of that Day, that Confiance rifes from the Floor, and joins in the Scene by entring her Protest against their Joy, and curfing the Bufinefs of the Day. Thus, I conceive, the Scenes are fairly continued; and there is no Chalm in the Action: but a proper Interval made both for Sa libury's coming to Lady Contance, and for the Solemnization of the Marriage. Befides, as Faulconbridge is evidently the Poet's favourite Character, 'twas very well judg'd to close the A with his Soliloquy. THEOBALD.
This whole note feems judicious enough; but Mr. Theobald forgets that there were, in Shakefeare's time, no moveable fcenes.
7 From this paffage Rowe feems to have borrowed the firit lines of his Fair Penitent.
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