Buck.
Welcome, sweet prince, to London, to your chamber. ^note

Glou.
Welcome, dear cousin, my thoughts' sovereign:
The weary way hath made you melancholy.

Prince.
No, uncle; but our crosses on the way
Have ^note made it tedious, wearisome, and heavy:
I want more uncles here to welcome me.

Glou.
Sweet prince, the untainted virtue of your years
Hath ^note not yet dived into the world's deceit:
Nor ^note more can you distinguish of a man
Than of his outward show; which, God he knows,
Seldom or never jumpeth with the heart.
Those uncles which you want were dangerous;
Your grace attended to their sugar'd words,
But look'd not on the poison of their hearts:
God keep you from them, and from such false friends!

Prince. ^note
God keep me from false ^note friends! but they were none ^note.

Glou.
My lord, the mayor ^note of London comes to greet you. Enter the Lord Mayor ^note, and his train.

May.
God bless your grace with health and happy days! ^note

Prince.
I thank you, good my lord; and thank you all.
I thought my mother and my brother York
Would long ere this have met us on the way:
Fie, what a slug is Hastings, that he comes not
To tell us whether they will come or no! Enter Lord Hastings.

Buck.
And, in good time, here comes the sweating lord.

Prince.
Welcome, my lord: what, will our mother come?

Hast.
On what occasion, God he knows, not I,
The queen your mother and your brother York
Have ^note taken sanctuary: the tender prince

Would fain have come ^note with me to meet your grace,
But by his mother was perforce withheld.

Buck.
Fie, what an ^note indirect and peevish ^note course
Is this of hers! Lord cardinal, will your grace
Persuade the queen to send ^note the Duke of York
Unto his princely brother presently?
If she deny, Lord Hastings, go ^note with him ^note,
And from her jealous arms pluck him perforce.

Card.
My Lord of Buckingham, if my weak oratory
Can from his mother win the ^note Duke of York,
Anon ^note expect him here; but if she be obdurate
To mild entreaties ^note, God in heaven ^note forbid
We should infringe the holy privilege
Of blessed ^note sanctuary! not for all this land
Would I be guilty of so deep ^note a sin.

Buck.
You are too senseless-obstinate ^note, my lord,
Too ceremonious and traditional:
Weigh it but ^note with the grossness of this ^note age,
You break not sanctuary in seizing him.
The benefit thereof is always granted
To those whose dealings have deserved the place
And those who have the wit to claim the place:
This prince hath neither claim'd it nor deserved it;
And therefore ^note, in mine opinion, cannot have it:
Then, taking ^note him from thence ^note that is not there,

You break no privilege nor charter there.
Oft have I heard of sanctuary men;
But sanctuary children ne'er ^note till now.

Card.
My lord, you shall o'er-rule ^note my mind for once.
Come on, Lord Hastings, will you go with me?

Hast.
I go, my lord.

Prince.
Good ^note lords, make all the speedy haste you may. [Exeunt ^note Cardinal and Hastings.
Say, uncle Gloucester, if our brother come,
Where shall we sojourn till our coronation?

Glou.
Where it seems ^note best unto your royal self.
If I may ^note counsel you, some day or two
Your highness shall repose you at the Tower:
Then where you please, and ^note shall be thought most fit
For your best health and recreation.

Prince.
I do not like the Tower, of any place.
Did Julius Cæsar build that place, my lord?

Buck. ^note
He did, my gracious ^note lord, begin that place;
Which, since, succeeding ages have re-edified ^note.

Prince.
Is it upon record, or else reported
Successively from age to age, he built it?

Buck.
Upon ^note record, my gracious lord.

Prince.
But say, my lord, it were not register'd,
Methinks the truth should live from age to age,
As 'twere retail'd ^note to all posterity,
Even to the general all-ending ^note day.

Glou. [Aside ^note]
So wise so young, they say, do never ^note live long.

Prince.
What say you, uncle?

Glou.
I say, without characters, fame lives ^note long.

[Aside ^note]
Thus ^note, like the formal vice, Iniquity ^note,
I moralize two ^note meanings in one word.

Prince.
That Julius Cæsar was a famous man;
With what his valour did enrich his wit,
His wit set down to make his valour live:
Death makes ^note no conquest of this ^note conqueror;
For now ^note he lives in fame, though not in life.
I'll tell you what, my cousin Buckingham,—

Buck.
What, my gracious ^note lord?

Prince.
An if ^note I live until I be a man,
I'll win our ancient right in France again,
Or die a soldier, as I lived a king.

Glou. [Aside ^note]
Short summers lightly ^note have ^note a forward spring. Enter young York, Hastings, and the Cardinal.

Buck.
Now, in good time, here comes the Duke of York.

Prince.
Richard ^note of York! how fares our loving ^note brother?

York.
Well, my dread ^note lord; so must I call you now.

Prince.
Ay, brother, to our grief, as it is yours:
Too late ^note he died that ^note might have kept that title,
Which by his death hath lost much majesty.

Glou.
How fares our cousin, noble Lord of York?

York.
I thank you, gentle uncle. O, my lord,
You said that idle weeds are fast in growth:
The prince my brother hath outgrown ^note me far.

Glou.
He hath, my lord.

York.
And therefore is he idle?

Glou.
O, my fair cousin, I must not say so.

York.
Then is he more beholding ^note to you than I.

Glou.
He may command me as my sovereign;
But you have power in me as in ^note a kinsman.

York.
I pray you, uncle ^note, give me this ^note dagger.

Glou.
My dagger, little cousin? with all my heart.

Prince.
A beggar, brother?

York.
Of ^note my kind uncle, that I know will give;
And ^note being ^note but ^note a toy, which is ^note no grief ^note to give ^note.

Glou.
A greater gift than that I'll give my cousin.

York.
A greater gift! O, that's the sword to ^note it.

Glou.
Ay, gentle cousin, were it light enough.

York.
O, then ^note, I see, you will ^note part but with light gifts ^note;
In weightier things you'll say a beggar nay.

Glou.
It is too heavy ^note for your ^note grace to wear.

York.
I ^note weigh it lightly, were it heavier.

Glou.
What, would you have my weapon, little lord?

York.
I would, that I might thank ^note you as ^note you call me.

Glou.
How?

York.
Little.

Prince.
My Lord of York will still be cross in talk:
Uncle, your grace knows how to bear with him.

York.
You mean, to bear me, not to bear with me:
Uncle, my brother mocks both you and me;
Because that I am little, like an ape,
He thinks that you should bear me on your shoulders.

Buck. ^note
With what a sharp-provided ^note wit he reasons!

To mitigate the scorn he gives ^note his uncle,
He prettily and aptly taunts himself:
So cunning and so young is wonderful.

Glou.
My lord ^note, will't ^note please you ^note pass along?
Myself and my good cousin Buckingham
Will to your mother, to entreat of her
To meet you at the Tower and welcome you.

York.
What, will you go unto the Tower, my lord?

Prince.
My lord protector needs ^note will have it so.

York.
I shall not sleep in quiet at the Tower.

Glou.
Why ^note, what should you fear?

York.
Marry, my uncle Clarence' ^note angry ghost:
My grandam ^note told me he was murder'd there.

Prince.
I fear no uncles dead.

Glou.
Nor none that live, I hope.

Prince.
An if ^note they live, I hope I need not fear.
But come, my lord; and with ^note a heavy heart,
Thinking on them, go I unto the Tower. [A Sennet. ^note Exeunt ^note all but Gloucester, Buckingham and Catesby. ^note

Buck.
Think you, my lord, this little parting York
Was not incensed by his subtle mother
To taunt and scorn you thus opprobriously?

Glou.
No doubt, no doubt: O, 'tis a parlous ^note boy;
Bold, quick, ingenious, forward, capable:
He is all the mother's, from the top to toe.

Buck.
Well, let them rest. Come hither ^note, Catesby.

Thou art sworn ^note as deeply to effect what we intend
As closely to conceal what we impart:
Thou know'st ^note our reasons urged upon the way;
What think'st ^note thou? is it not an easy matter
To make William Lord ^note Hastings of our mind,
For the instalment of this noble duke
In the seat royal of this famous isle?

Cate.
He for his father's sake so loves the prince
That he will not be won to aught against him.

Buck.
What think'st thou then of Stanley? what will he? ^note

Cate.
He will do all in all as Hastings doth.

Buck.
Well, then, no more but ^note this: go, gentle Catesby,
And, as it were far off, sound thou ^note Lord Hastings ^note,
How he doth stand affected to our ^note purpose;
And summon him to-morrow to the Tower,
To sit about the coronation ^note.
If thou dost find him tractable to us,
Encourage him, and show ^note him all our reasons:
If he be leaden ^note, icy-cold ^note, unwilling,
Be thou so too; and so break off your ^note talk,
And give us notice of his inclination:
For we to-morrow hold divided councils,
Wherein thyself shalt ^note highly be employ'd.

Glou.
Commend me to Lord William: tell him, Catesby,
His ancient knot of dangerous adversaries
To-morrow are let blood at Pomfret-castle;
And bid my friend ^note, for joy of this good news,

Give Mistress ^note Shore one gentle ^note kiss the more.

Buck.
Good Catesby, go ^note, effect this business soundly.

Cate.
My good lords both, with all ^note the heed I may ^note.

Glou.
Shall ^note we hear from you, Catesby, ere we sleep?

Cate.
You shall, my lord.

Glou.
At Crosby Place ^note, there shall you ^note find us both. [Exit Catesby. ^note

Buck.
Now ^note, my lord, what shall we do, if we perceive ^note
Lord ^note Hastings will not yield to our complots?

Glou.
Chop off his head, man; somewhat we will do ^note:
And, look, when I am king, claim thou of me
The earldom of Hereford ^note, and the ^note moveables
Whereof the king my brother stood ^note possess'd.

Buck.
I'll claim that promise at your grace's ^note hands ^note.

Glou.
And look to have it yielded with all willingness ^note.
Come, let us sup betimes, that afterwards
We may digest our complots ^note in some form. [Exeunt. ^note

Next section