9 note
Come o'er the bourn, Bessy, to me:9Q1090—.
Fool.
Her boat hath a leak,
And she must not speak
Why she dares not come over to thee.
-- 480 --
Edg.
The foul fiend haunts poor Tom in the
voice 1 noteof a nightingale. 2 noteHopdance cries in Tom's
belly for two white herring* note. Croak not, black angel;
I have no food for thee.
Kent.
How do you, sir? Stand you not so amaz'd:
Will you lie down and rest upon the cushions?
Lear.
I'll see their trial first:—Bring in the evidence.—
Thou robed man of justice, take thy place;—
[To Edgar.
And thou, his yoke-fellow of equity,
[To the Fool.
Bench by his side:—You are of the commission,
Sit you too.
[To Kent.
Edg.
Let us deal justly.
3 note
Sleepest, or wakest thou, jolly shepherd?
Thy sheep be in the corn;
-- 481 --
And for one blast of thy minikin mouth,
Thy sheep shall take no harm.
Purre! the cat is grey.
Lear.
Arraign her first; 'tis Goneril. I here take
my oath before this honourable assembly, she kick'd
the poor king her father.
Fool.
Come hither, mistress; Is your name Goneril?
Lear.
She cannot deny it.
Fool.
Cry you mercy, I took you for a joint-stool4 note.
Lear.
And here's another, whose warpt looks proclaim
What store her heart is made on.—Stop her there!
Arms, arms, sword, fire!—Corruption in the place!
False justicer, why hast thou let her 'scape?
Edg.
Bless thy five wits!
Kent.
O pity!—Sir, where is the patience now,
That you so oft have boasted to retain?
Edg.
My tears begin to take his part so much,
They'll mar my counterfeiting.
[Aside.
Lear.
The little dogs and all,
Tray, Blanch, and Sweet-heart, see, they bark at me5 note
.
-- 482 --
Edg.
Tom will throw his head at them:—Avaunt, you curs!
Be thy mouth or black or white6 note,
Tooth that poisons if it bite;
Mastiff, grey-hound, mungril grim,
Hound, or spaniel, 7 note
brache, or lym;
Or bobtail tike8 note
, or trundle-tail9 note
;
Tom will make him weep and wail:
-- 483 --
For, with throwing thus my head,
Dogs leap the hatch, and all are fled.
Do de, de de. 1 note
Sessy, come, march to wakes and fairs,
And market towns:—Poor Tom, 2 note
thy horn is dry.
-- 484 --
Lear.
Then let them anatomize Regan, see what
breeds about her heart: Is there any cause in nature,
that makes these hard hearts?—You, sir, I entertain
you for one of my hundred; only, I do not like the
fashion of your garments: 3 noteyou will say, they are
Persian attire; but let them be chang'd.
[To Edgar.
Kent.
Now, good my lord, lie here, and rest awhile.
Lear.
Make no noise, make no noise; draw the curtains:
So, so, so: We'll go to supper i' the morning: So, so, so.
Fool.
And I'll go to bed at noon4 note.
Re-enter Gloster.
Glo.
Come hither, friend: Where is the king my master?
Kent.
Here, sir; but trouble him not, his wits are gone.
Glo.
Good friend, I pr'ythee take him in thy arms;
I have o'er-heard a plot of death upon him:
There is a litter ready; lay him in't,
And drive toward Dover, friend, where thou shalt meet
Both welcome and protection. Take up thy master:
If thou should'st dally half an hour, his life,
-- 485 --
With thine, and all that offer to defend him,
Stand in assured loss: Take up, take up5 note;
And follow me, that will to some provision
Give thee quick conduct.
[Kent.
6 note
Oppressed nature sleeps:—
This rest might yet have balm'd 7 notethy broken senses,
Which, if convenience will not allow,
Stand in hard cure.—Come, help to bear thy master;
Thou must not stay behind.
[To the Fool.
Glo.
Come, come, away.
[Exeunt, bearing off the king.
Manet Edgar.
Edg.
When we our betters see bearing our woes,
We scarcely think our miseries our foes.
Who alone suffers, suffers most i' the mind;
Leaving 8 notefree things, and happy shows, behind:
But then the mind much sufferance doth o'erskip,
When grief hath mates, and bearing fellowship.
-- 486 --
How light and portable my pain seems now,
When that, which makes me bend, makes the king bow;
He childed, as I father'd!—Tom, away:
9 note
Mark the high noises; and thyself bewray1 note
,
When false opinion, whose wrong thought defiles thee,
In thy just proof, repeals, and reconciles thee,
What will hap more to-night, safe scape the king!
Lurk, Lurk.]—
[Exit.
Samuel Johnson [1778], The plays of William Shakspeare. In ten volumes. With the corrections and illustrations of various commentators; to which are added notes by Samuel Johnson and George Steevens. The second edition, Revised and Augmented (Printed for C. Bathurst [and] W. Strahan [etc.], London) [word count] [S10901].