Edg.
Here, father, take the shadow of this tree
For your good Host; pray, that the right may thrive:
If ever I return to you again,
I'll bring you comfort.

Glo.
Grace be with you, Sir! [Exit Edgar. [Alarum, and retreat, within. Re-enter Edgar.

Edg.
Away, old man; give me thy hand, away;
King Lear hath lost, he and his daughter ta'en,
Give me thy hand. Come on.

Glo.
No further, Sir; a man may rot even here.

Edg.
What, in ill thoughts again? men must endure
Their going hence, ev'n as their coming hither:
Ripeness is all; come on.

Glo.
And that's true too. [Exeunt: Enter in Conquest, with Drum and Colours, Edmund; Lear and Cordelia, as prisoners; Soldiers, Captain.

Edm.
Some Officers take them away; good guard,
Until their greater pleasures first be known,
That are to censure them.

Cor.
We're not the first,
Who with best meaning have incurr'd the worst:
For thee, oppressed King, am I cast down;
My self could else out-frown false fortune's frown.
Shall we not see these daughters and these sisters?

Lear.
No, no, no, no; come, let's away to prison;
We two alone will sing, like birds i'th' cage:
When thou dost ask me Blessing, I'll kneel down,
And ask of thee Forgiveness: so we'll live,
And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh
At gilded butterflies: and hear poor rogues
Talk of Court-news, and we'll talk with them too,
Who loses, and who wins; who's in, who's out:
And take upon's the mystery of things,
As if we were God's spies. And we'll wear out,
In a wall'd prison, packs and sects of Great ones,
That ebb and flow by th' moon.

Edm.
Take them away.

Lear.
Upon such Sacrifices, my Cordelia,
The Gods themselves throw incense. Have I caught thee?
He that parts us, shall bring a brand from heav'n,
And fire us hence, like foxes; wipe thine eye,
The good-jers shall devour them, flesh and fell,
Ere they shall make us weep; we'll see 'em starv'd first.
Come. [Ex. Lear and Cordelia guarded.

Edm.
Come hither, Captain, hark.
Take thou this note; go, follow them to prison.
One step I have advanc'd thee; if thou dost
As this instructs thee, thou dost make thy way
To noble fortunes: know thou this, that men
Are as the time is; to be tender-minded
Do's not become a sword; My great employment(58) ^note

Will not bear question; either say, thou'lt do't;
Or thrive by other means.

Capt.
I'll do't, my lord.

Edm.
About it, and write happy, when thou'st done.
Mark, I say, instantly; and carry it so,
As I have set it down. [Exit Captain.

Flourish. Enter Albany, Gonerill, Regan, and Soldiers

Alb.
Sir, you have shew'd to day your valiant strain,
And fortune led you well: you have the Captives,
Who were the opposites of this day's strife:
We do require them of you, so to use them,
As we shall find their merits and our safety
May equally determine.

Edm.
Sir, I thought it fit
To send the old and miserable King
To some retention, and appointed guard;
Whose age has charms in it, whose title more,
To pluck the common bosoms on his side;
And turn our imprest launces in our eyes,
Which do command them. With him I sent the Queen;
My reason all the same; and they are ready
To morrow, or at further space, t' appear
Where you shall hold your Session. At this time,
We sweat and bleed; the Friend hath lost his Friend;
And the best Quarrels, in the Heat, are curst
By those that feel their Sharpness.—
The Question of Cordelia, and her Father,
Requires a fitter Place.(59) ^note

Alb.
Sir, by your patience,
I hold you but a Subject of this war,
Not as a Brother.

Reg.
That's as we list to grace him.
Methinks, our pleasure might have been demanded,
Ere you had spoke so far. He led our Pow'rs;
Bore the Commission of my Place and Person;
The which immediacy may well stand up,
And call it self your brother.

Gon.
Not so hot:
In his own grace he doth exalt himself,
More than in your advancement.

Reg.
In my Right,
By me invested, he compeers the best.

Alb.
That were the most, if he should husband you.

Reg.
Jesters do oft prove Prophets.

Gon.
Holla, holla!
That eye, that told you so, look'd but a-squint.

Reg.
Lady, I am not well, else I should answer
From a full-flowing stomach. General,
Take thou my soldiers, prisoners, patrimony,
Dispose of them, of me; the walls are thine:
Witness the World, that I create thee here
My lord and master.

Gon.
Mean you to enjoy him?

Alb.
The Lett alone lyes not in your good Will.

Edm.
Nor in thine, lord.

Alb.
Half-blooded fellow, yes.

Reg.
Let the drum strike, and prove my Title thine.

Alb.
Stay yet; hear reason: Edmund, I arrest thee
On capital treason; and, in thy Arrest,
This gilded Serpent: for your Claim, fair sister,
I bar it in the interest of my wife;
'Tis she is sub-contracted to this lord,
And I, her husband, contradict your banes.
If you will marry, make your loves to me,
My lady is bespoke.

Gon.
An enterlude!—

Alb.
Thou art arm'd, Glo'ster; let the trumpet sound:
If none appear to prove upon thy person
Thy heinous, manifest, and many treasons,
There is my Pledge: I'll prove it on thy heart,
Ere I taste bread, thou art in nothing less
Than I have here proclaim'd thee.

Reg.
Sick, O sick—

Gon.
If not, I'll ne'er trust poison. [Aside.

Edm.
There's my exchange; what in the world he is,
That names me Traitor, villain-like he lies;
Call by thy trumpet: he that dares approach,

On him, on you, (who not?) I will maintain
My truth and honour firmly.

Alb.
A herald, ho! Enter a Herald.
Trust to thy single virtue; for thy soldiers,
All levied in my name, have in my name
Took their discharge.

Reg.
This sickness grows upon me.

Alb.
She is not well, convey her to my Tent. [Exit Reg. led.
Come hither, herald, let the trumpet sound,
And read out this. [A trumpet sounds.

Herald. reads.

If any man of Quality, or Degree, within the lists of the army, will maintain upon Edmund supposed Earl of Glo'ster, that he is a manifold traitor, let him appear by the third sound of the trumpet: he is bold in his defence.

Her.
Again. 2 trumpet.

Her.
Again. 3 trumpet. [Trumpet answers, within. Enter Edgar, armed.

Alb.
Ask him his purposes, why he appears
Upon this Call o'th' trumpet.

Her.
What are you?
Your name, your quality, and why you answer
This present summons?

Edg.
Know, my name is lost;
By treason's tooth bare-gnawn, and canker-bit;
Yet am I noble, as the Adversary
I come to cope.

Alb.
Which is that Adversary?

Edg.
What's he, that speaks for Edmund Earl of Glo'ster?

Edm.
Himself; what say'st thou to him?

Edg.
Draw thy Sword,
That if my speech offend a noble heart,

Thy arm may do thee justice; here is mine:—
Behold, it is the privilege of mine Honours,
My Oath, and my Profession. I protest,
Maugre thy strength, place, youth, and eminence,
Spite of thy victor-sword, and fire-new fortune,
Thy valour, and thy heart, thou art a traitor;
False to thy Gods, thy brother, and thy father;
Conspirant 'gainst this high illustrious Prince,
And from th' extreamest upward of thy head,
To the descent and dust below thy foot,
A most toad-spotted traitor. Say thou, no;
This sword, this arm, and my best spirits are bent
To prove upon thy heart, whereto I speak,
Thou liest.

Edm.
In Wisdom I should ask thy name;
But since thy out-side looks so fair and warlike,
And that thy tongue some 'Say of Breeding breathes;
What safe and nicely I might well delay
By rule of Knight-hood, I disdain and spurn:
Back do I toss these treasons to thy head,
With the hell-hated lie o'erwhelm thy heart;
Which (for they yet glance by, and scarcely bruise)
This sword of mine shall give them instant way,
Where thou shalt rest for ever. Trumpets, speak. [Alarum. Fight.

Gon.
O, save him, save him; This is Practice, Gloster:(60) ^note

By th' law of war, thou wast not bound to answer
An unknown opposite; thou art not vanquish'd
But cozen'd and beguil'd.

Alb.
Shut your mouth, Dame,
Or with this paper shall I stop it;
Thou worse than any thing, read thine own evil:
No tearing, lady; I perceive, you know it.

Gon.
Say, if I do; the Laws are mine, not thine;
Who can arraign me for't?

Alb.
Monster, know'st thou this paper?

Gon.
Ask me not, what I know— [Exit Gon.

Alb.
Go after her, she's desperate, govern her.

Edm.
What you have charg'd me with, That I have done,
And more, much more; the time will bring it out.
'Tis past, and so am I: but what art thou,
That hast this fortune on me? If thou'rt noble,
I do forgive thee.

Edg.
Let's exchange charity:
I am no less in blood than thou art, Edmund;
If more, the more thou'st wrong'd me.
My name is Edgar, and thy father's son.
The Gods are just, and of our pleasant vices
Make instruments to scourge us:
The dark and vicious place, where thee he got,
Cost him his eyes.

Edm.
Thou'st spoken right, 'tis true,
The wheel is come full circle; I am here.

Alb.
Methought, thy very gate did prophesie
A royal Nobleness; I must embrace thee:—
Let Sorrow split my heart, if ever I
Did hate thee, or thy father!

Edg.
Worthy Prince, I know't.

Alb.
Where have you hid your self?
How have you known the miseries of your father?

Edg.
By nursing them, my lord. List a brief tale,
And when 'tis told, O, that my heart would burst!—
The bloody Proclamation to escape,
That follow'd me so near, (O our lives sweetness!
That we the pain of death would hourly bear,
Rather than die at once) taught me to shift
Into a mad-man's rags; t' assume a Semblance,
The very Dogs disdain'd: and in this habit
Met I my father with his bleeding rings,
Their precious gems new lost; became his guide,
Led him, beg'd for him, sav'd him from despair;
Never (O fault!) reveal'd my self unto him,
Until some half hour past, when I was arm'd,

Not sure, though hoping of this good success,
I ask'd his blessing, and from first to last
Told him my pilgrimage. But his flaw'd heart,
Alack, too weak the Conflict to support,
'Twixt two extreams of passion, joy and grief,
Burst smilingly.

Bast.
This speech of yours hath mov'd me,
And shall, perchance, do good; but speak you on,
You look, as you had something more to say.

Alb.
If there be more, more woful, hold it in,
For I am almost ready to dissolve,
Hearing of this.

Edg.
—This would have seem'd a Period,(61) ^note
To such as love not Sorrow: but Another,
To amplify too much, would make much more,
And top Extremity!—
Whilst I was big in Clamour, came there a Man,
Who having seen me in my worser State,
Shun'd my abhorr'd Society; but now finding
Who 'twas, had so endur'd, with his strong Arms
He fasten'd on my Neck; and bellow'd out,
As he'd burst Heaven; threw him on my Father;
Told the most piteous Tale of Lear and him,
That ever Ear receiv'd; which in recounting
His Grief grew puissant, and the Strings of Life
Began to crack.—Twice then the Trumpets sounded,
And there I left him traunc'd.—

Alb.
But who was this?

Edg.
Kent, Sir; the banish'd Kent, who in disguise
Follow'd his enemy King, and did him Service
Improper for a Slave. Enter a Gentleman.

Gent.
Help, help!

Edg.
What kind of help?

Alb.
Speak, man.

Edg.
What means this bloody knife?

Gent.
'Tis hot, it smoaks; it came even from the heart
Of—O! she's dead.—

Alb.
Who's dead? speak, man.

Gent.
Your lady, Sir, your lady; and her sister
By her is poison'd; she confesses it.

Edm.
I was contracted to them both; all three
Now marry in an instant.

Edg.
Here comes Kent. Enter Kent.

Alb.
Produce the bodies, be they alive or dead. [Gonerill and Regan's Bodies brought out.
This Judgment of the heav'ns, that makes us tremble,
Touches us not with pity.—O! is this He?
The time will not allow the compliment,
Which very manners urge.

Kent.
I am come
To bid my King and Master aye good night;
Is he not here?

Alb.
Great thing of us forgot!
Speak, Edmund, where's the King? and where's Cordelia?
See'st thou this Object, Kent?

Kent.
Alack, why thus?

Edm.
Yet Edmund was belov'd:
The one the other poison'd for my sake,
And after slew her self.

Alb.
Even so; cover their faces.

Edm.
I pant for life; some Good I mean to do,
Despight of mine own nature. Quickly send,
(Be brief) into the Castle; for my Writ

Is on the life of Lear and on Cordelia:
Nay, send in time.

Alb.
Run, run, O run—

Edg.
To whom, my lord? who has the office?
Send thy token of reprieve.

Edm.
Well thought on, take my sword,
Give it the Captain—

Edg.
Haste thee for thy life. [Exit Messenger.

Edm.
He hath Commission from thy wife and me
To hang Cordelia in the prison, and
To lay the blame upon her own despair.

Alb.
The Gods defend her! bear him hence a while. [Edmund is born off. Enter Lear, with Cordelia dead in his arms.

Lear.
Howl, howl, howl, howl,—O you are men of stone,
Had I your tongues and eyes, I'd use them so,
That heaven's vault should crack: she's gone for ever!
I know, when one is dead, and when one lives;
She's dead as earth! lend me a looking-glass,
If that her Breath will mist or stain the stone,
Why then she lives.

Kent.
Is this the promis'd End?

Lear.
This feather stirs, she lives; if it be so,
It is a Chance which do's redeem all sorrows,
That ever I have felt.

Kent.
O my good master! [Kneeling.

Lear.
Pr'ythee, away—

Edg.
'Tis noble Kent, your friend.

Lear.
A plague upon you, murth'rous traitors all!
I might have sav'd her; now she's gone for ever!
Cordelia, Cordelia, stay a little. Ha!—
What is't thou say'st? her voice was ever soft,
Gentle, and low; an excellent thing in woman.
I kill'd the slave, that was a hanging thee.

Gent.
'Tis true, my lords, he did.

Lear.
Did I not, fellow?
I've seen the day, with my good biting faulchion
I would have made them skip: I am old now,

And these same crosses spoil me. Who are you?
Mine eyes are none o'th' best.—I'll tell you strait.

Kent.
If fortune brag of two she lov'd and hated,
One of them we behold.

Lear.
Are you not Kent?

Kent.
The same; your servant Kent;
Where is your servant Caius?

Lear.
'Twas a good fellow, I can tell you that,(62) ^note

He'd strike, and quickly too:—he's dead and rotten.

Kent.
No, my good lord, I am the very man,—

Lear.
I'll see that strait.

Kent.
That, from your first of difference and decay,
Have follow'd your sad steps—

Lear.
You're welcome hither.

Kent.
Nor no man else;—all's cheerless, dark, and dead:
Your eldest daughters have fore-done themselves,
And desp'rately are dead.

Lear.
Ay, so I think.

Alb.
He knows not what he says; and vain is it,
That we present us to him.

Edg.
Very bootless. Enter a Messenger.

Mes.
Edmund is dead, my lord.

Alb.
That's but a trifle.
You lords and noble friends, know our intent;
What Comfort to this great Decay may come,
Shall be apply'd. For us, we will resign,
During the life of this old Majesty,
To him our absolute Power: to you, your Rights, [To Edgar.
With boot, and such addition as your honours
Have more than merited. All friends shall taste
The wages of their virtue, and all foes
The cup of their deservings: O see, see—

Lear.
And my poor Fool is hang'd: no, no, no life.
Why should a dog, a horse, a rat have life,
And thou no breath at all? thou'lt come no more,
Never, never, never, never, never—
Pray you, undo this button. Thank you, Sir;
Do you see this? look on her, look on her lips,(63) ^note

Edg.
He faints; my lord,—

Kent.
Break heart, I pr'ythee, break!

Edg.
Look up, my lord.

Kent.
Vex not his ghost: O, let him pass! He hates him,
That would upon the rack of this rough world
Stretch him out longer.

Edg.
He is gone, indeed.

Kent.
The wonder is, he hath endur'd so long:
He but usurpt his life.

Alb.
Bear them from hence, our present business
Is general woe: friends of my soul, you twain
Rule in this Realm, and the gor'd State sustain.

Kent.
I have a journey, Sir, shortly to go;
My master calls me; I must not say, no. [Dies.

Alb.
The weight of this sad time we must obey,(64) ^note
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.
The oldest hath born most; we, that are young,
Shall never see so much, nor live so long. [Exeunt with a dead March.

TIMON OF

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