All honeft league and faithfull promise broke, bes by
The lawe of kinde and troth' thus rent in twaine,
His hart on mischeese set, and in his brest
Black treafon hid; then, then did I dispaire
That ever time could winne him freend to me,
Then faw I how he fmilde with flaying knife.n
Wrapte under cloake, then faw I deepe deceite
Lurke in his face and death preparde for me.
Even nature moved me then to holde my life
More deere to me then his," and bad this hand,^
(Since by his life my death muft needes enfue,
And by his death my life mote be preferyd,)
To fhed his bloud, and feeke my fafetie fo,
And wifdome willed me without protract
In fpeedy wife to put the fame in ure,

Thus have I tolde the caufe that moved me
To work my brothers death, and fo I yeelde
My life, my death to judgement of your grace.
Gorboduc.

Oh cruel wight, fhould any cause prevaile
To make thee staine thy handes with brothers blood
But what of thee we will refolve to doo,
Shall yet remaine unknowne. Thou in the meane,
Shalt from our royall presence banishte be,
Untill our princely pleafure furder shall

To thee be fhewed, departe therfore our fight M
Accurfed childe. What cruel destiny,

What froward fate hath forted us this chaunce
That even in those, where we should comfort finde,
Where our delight now in our aged daies

Should reft and be, even there our only greefe
And deepest forrowes to abridge our life,

Moft pining cares and deadly thoughts doo grave, dr.

Aroftus.

Your grace fhould now in these grave yeeres of yours Have found ere this the price of mortall joyes, How full of change, how brittle our estate, How shorte they be, how fading heere in earth, Of nothing fure, fave only of the death,

To whome bath man and all the worlde dooth owe and

Their end at laft; neither fhould natures power
In other forte against your hart prevaile,
Then as the naked hand whofe ftroke affaies
The armed breast where force dooth light in vaine,
Gorboduc.

Many can yeeld right grave and fage advice Of patient sprite to others wrapte in woe, And can in fpeech both rule and conquer kinde, Who if by proofe, they might feele natures force, Would fhew themfelves men as they are indeede, Which now will needes be gods: but what dooth meane The forry cheere of her that heere dooth come ?

Marcella.

Oh where is ruthe ? or where is pittie now?
Whether is gentle hart and mercy fled?
Are they exilde out of our ftony breftes,
Never to make returne? is all the worlde
Drowned in blood, and funcke in crueltie?
If not in women mercy may be found,
If not (alas) within the mothers brest
To her owne childe, to her own flesh and bloud;
If ruthe be banifht thence, if pittie there.
May have no place, if there no gentle hart:

Doo live and dwell, where fhould we feeke it then?

Gorboduc.

Madam (alas) what meanes your wofull tale?

Marcella.

O filly woman I, why to this howre,
Have kinde and fortune thus deferd my breath?
That I fhould live to fee this dolefull daye :
Will ever wight beleeve that fuch hard hart
Could reft within the cruell mothers breast,
With her owne hand to flaye her onely fonne ?
But out (alas) these eyes behelde the fame,
They faw the driery fight, and are become
Moft ruthefull recordes of the bloody fact.
Porrex, alas, is by his mother flaine,
And with her hand a wofull thing to tell,
While flumbring on his carefull bed he reftes,
His hart ftabde in with knife is reft of life.

Gorboduc

Gorboduc.

O Eubulus, oh draw this fword of ours,
And pierce this hart with speede, O hatefull light,
O loathfome life, O fweete and welcome death,
Deere Eubulus woorke this we thee befeeche.

Eubulus

Patient your grace, perhaps he liveth yet,
With wound receivde but not of certaine death.
Gorloduc.

O let us then repaire unto the place,
And fee if that Porrex live, or thus be flaine.
Marcella.

Alas he liveth not, it is too true,

That with thefe eyes, of him a peereles prince,
Sonne to a king, and in the flower of youth,
Even with a twinke a fenceles ftock I faw.

O damned deede!

Arofius.

Marcella.

But hear his ruthefull end.

The noble prince, pierft with the fodaine wounds,
Out of his wretched flumber haftilie start,

Whofe ftrength now failing ftreight he overthrew,
When in the fall his eyes ev'n now unclofde
Beheld the queene, and cryde to her for helpe;
We then, alas, the ladies which that time
Did there attend, feeing that heinous deede,
And hearing him oft call the wretched name
Of mother, and to crie to her for aide,
Whofe direfull hand gave him the mortall wound,
Pitieng alas (for nought els could we doo)
His rufull ende, ranne to the wofull bed
Difpoyled ftreight his breft, and all we might
Wiped in vaine with napkins next at hande,
The fodaine ftreams of bloud that flushed fast
Out of the gaping wound: O what a looke,
O what a ruthfull ftedfaft eye me thought
He fixt upon my face, which to my death
Will never parte from me, wherewith a braide
A deepe fet figh he gave, and therewithall

Clafping

Clafping his hands, to heaven he caft his fight
And freight pale death preffing within his face
The flying ghoft his mortall corps forfooke.

Aroftus.

Never did age bring forth fo vile a facte.
Marcella.

O hard and cruel hap, that thus affignde
Unto fo worthie wight fo wretched ende :
But most hard cruell hart that could confent
To lend the hatefull deftenies that hande,
By which, alas, fo heynous crime was wrought,
O queen of adamant, O marble breft,
If not the favour of his comely face,
If not his princely cheare and countenance,
His valiaunt active armes, his manly breft,
If not his faire and feemely perfonage,
His noble limmes in fuch proportion cast,
As would have rapt a filly womans thought;
If this might not have moovd the bloodie hart,
And that most cruel hand the wretched weapon
Even to let fall, and kift him in the face,

With teares for ruth to reave fuch one by death;
Should nature yet consent to flay her fonne ?
O mother, thou to murder thus thy childe!
Even Jove with juftice myft with lightning flames
From heaven fend downe fome ftraunge revenge on thee.
Ah noble prince, how oft have I beheld

Thee mounted on thy fierce and trampling fteede,
Shining in armour bright before the tilte,

And with thy miftreffe fleeve tide on thy helme,
There charge thy staffe, to please thy ladies eye,
That bowde the head peece of thy frendly foe?
How oft in armes on horfe to bend the mace,
How oft in armes on foot to breake the fworde,
Which never now these eyes may fee againe.

Aroftus.

Madame, alas, in vaine thefe plaints are fhed, Rather with me depart, and helpe to affwage The thoughtfull griefes that in the aged king

Muft

Muft needes by nature growe by death of this
His onely fonne, whome he did hold fo deare,
Marcella.

What wight is that which fawe that I did fee,
And could refraine to waile with plaint and teares? T
Not I, alas, that hart is not in me ;

But let us go, for I am greeyd anewe,

To call to minde the wretched fathers, woe..

Chorus.

སུ་

When greedie luft in royall feate to reigned Hath reft all care of gods and eke of menit dP And cruell hart, wrath, treafon and disdained num Within th'ambitious breft are lodged, themes am Behold how mischiefe wide her felfe difplayes? And with the brothers hand the brother flayes,

When bloud thus fhed dooth ftaine this heavens face,
Crying to Jove for vengeance of the deede,
The mightie God even moveth from his place
With wrath to wreke, then fendes he foorth with speede
The dreadfull furies, daughters of the night,
With ferpents girt, carrying the whip of ire,
With haire of flinging fnakes, and fhining bright
With flames and bloud, and with a brand of fire :
These for revenge of wretched murder done,
Dooth caufe the mother kill her onely fonne.
Bloud afketh bloud, and death muft death requit :
Jove by his juft and everlasting doome
Juftly hath ever fo requited it.

This times before recorde, and times to come
Shall find it true, and fo dooth present proofe
Prefent before our eies for our behoofe.

O happie wight that fuffers not the fnare
Of murderous mind to tangle him in blood:
And happie he that can in time beware
By others harmes, and turne it to his good.
But woe to him that fearing not to offend,
Dooth ferve his luft, and will not see the end.

The