Upon the next tree shalt thou hang alive,
Till famine cling thee: if thy speech be sooth,
[things, I care not if thou dost for me as much.-
I pall in resolution; and begin
To doubt the equivocation of the fiend,

There would have been a time for such a word. SCENE VII. The same. Another Part of

The air which cannot be cut. Thy kingdoin's wealth or ornament.

KING JOHN.

Persons represented.

Lords, Ladies, Citizens of Angiers, Sheriff, Heralds, Officers, Soldiers, Messengers, and

other Attendants.

Scene,Sometimes in England, and sometimes in France.

ACT I.

SCENE I. Northampton. A Room of State | Be thou as lightning in the eyes of France;

Re-enter Sheriff, with ROBERT FAULCON- | Between my father and my mother lay,
BRIDGE, and PHILIP, his bastard brother.
This expedition's charge.-What men are you?
Bast. Your faithful subject I, a gentleman,
Born in Northamptonshire; and eldest son,
As I suppose, to Robert Faulconbridge;
A soldier, by the honour-giving hand
Of Coeur-de-lion knighted in the field.
K. John. What art thou?

Rob. The son and heir to that same Faulcon-
bridge.
[heir?
K.John. Is that the elder, and art thou the
You came not of one mother then, it seems.
Bast. Most certain of one mother, mighty
king,

That is well known; and, as I think, one father:
But, for the certain knowledge of that truth,
I put you o'er to heaven, and to my mother;
Of that I doubt, as all men's children may.
Eli. Out on thee, rude man! thou dost shame
thy mother,

And wound her honour with this diffidence.

Bast. I, madam? no, I have no reason for it;
That is my brother's plea, and none of mine;
The which if he can prove, 'a pops me out
At least from fair five hundred pounds a-year:
Heaven guard my mother's honour, and my
land!
[younger born,
K. John. A good blunt fellow:-Why, being
Doth he lay claim to thine inheritance?
Bast. I know not why, except to get the land.
But once he slander'd me with bastardy:
But whe'r I be as true-begot, or no,
That still I lay upon my mother's head;
But, that I am as well begot, my liege,
(Fair fall the bones that took the pains for me!)
Compare our faces, and be judge yourself.
If old sir Robert did beget us both,
And were our father, and this sou like him;
O, old sir Robert, father, on my knee
I give heaven thanks, I was not like to thee.
K. John. Why, what a madcap hath heaven
lent us here!

Eli. He hath a trick + of Coeur-de-lion's face,
The accent of his tongue affecteth him:
Do you not read some tokens of my son
In the large composition of this man? [parts,
K.John. Mine eye hath well examined his
And finds them perfect Richard.-Sirrah,speak,
What doth move you to claim your brother's
land?
[father;
Bast. Because he hath a half-face, like my
With that half-face would he have all my land:
A half-faced groat five hundred pound a year!
Rob. My gracious liege, when that my father
lived,

Your brother did employ my father much;—
Bast.Well,sir,by this you cannot get my land;
Your tale must be how he employ'd my mother.
Rob. And once despatch'd him in an embassy
To Germany, there, with the emperor,
To treat of high affairs touching that time:
The advantage of his absence took the king,
And in the mean time sojourn'd at my father's;
Where how he did prevail, I shame to speak:
But truthis truth; large lengths of seas and shores
Trace, outline,

• Whether.

(As I have heard my father speak himself,)
When this same lusty gentleman was got.
Upon his death-bed he by will bequeath'd
His lands to me; and took it, on his death,
That this, my mother's son, was none of his;
And, if he were, he came into the world
Full fourteen weeks before the course of time.
Then, good my liege, let me have what is mine
My father's land, as was my father's will.

K. John. Sirrah, your brother is legitimate;
Your father's wife did after wedlock bear him:
And, if she did play false, the fault was her's;
Which fault lies on the hazards of all husbands
That marry wives. Tell me, how if my brother,
Who, as you say, took pains to get this son,
Had of your father claim'd this son for his?
In sooth, good friend, your father might have
kept

This calf bred from his cow, from all the world; In sooth, he might: then, if he were my brother's,

My brother might not claim him; nor your
father,

Being none of his,refuse him: This concludes,—
My mother's son did get your father's heir,
Your father's heir must have your father's land.
Rob. Shall then my father's will be of no force,
To dispossess that child which is not his?
Bast. Of no more force to dispossess me, sir,
Than was his will to get me, as I think.

Eli. Whether hadst thou rather,-be a Faal-
conbridge,

And like thy brother, to enjoy thy land;
Or the reputed son of Cœur-de-lion,
Lord of thy presence, and no land beside?
Bast. Madam, an if my brother had my shape,
And I had his, sir Robert his, like him;
And if my legs were two such riding-rods,
My arms such eel-skins stuff'd; my face so thin,
That in mine ear I durst not stick a rose,
Lest men should say, Look, where three-far-
things goes!

And, to his shape, were heir to all this land,
Would I might never stir from off this place,
I'd give it every foot to have this face;
I would not be sir Nob in any case.

Eli. I like thee well; Wilt thou forsake thy

fortune,

Bequeath thy land to him, and follow me?
I am a soldier, and now bound to France.
Bust. Brother, take you my land, I'll take

my chance:

Your face hath got five hundred pounds a year,
Yet sell your face for five pence, and 'tis dear.-
Madam, I'll follow you unto the death.
Eli. Nay, I would have you go before me
thither.
[way.
Bast. Our country manners give our betters
K. John. What is thy name?

Bast. Philip, my liege; so is my name begun;
Philip, good old sir Robert's wife's eldest son.
K. John. From henceforth bear his name
whose form thou bear'st:
Kneel thou down Philip, but arise more great:
Arise sir Richard, and Plantagenet.

Dignity of appearance.

§ Robert.

1

Bast. Brother, by the mother's side, give | What brings you here to court so hastily?
me your hand;

My father gave me honour, your's gave land :—
Now blessed be the hour, by night or day,
When I was got, sir Robert was away.

Eli. The very spirit of Plantagenet!
I am thy grandame, Richard; call me so.
Bust. Madam, by chance, but not by truth:
What though?

Something about, a little from the right,

In at the window, or else o'er the hatch:
Who dares not stir by day, must walk by night;
And have is have, however men do catch:
Near or far off, well won is still well shot;
And I am I, howe'er I was begot. [thy desire,
K. John. Go, Faulconbridge; now hast thou
A landless knight makes thee a landed squire.-
Come, madam, and come, Richard; we must
speed

For France, for France; for it is more than need.
Bast. Brother, adieu; Good fortune come to
For thou wast got i'the way of honesty. [thee!
[Exeunt all but the Bastard.
A foot of honour better than I was;
But many a foot of land the worse.
Well, now I can make any Joan a lady :-
Good den*, sir Richard,—God-a-mercy, fel-
low-

And if his name be George, I'll call him Peter:
For new-made honour doth forget men's names;
Tis too respective t, and too sociable,
For your conversiont. Now your traveller,
He and his tooth-pick at my worship's mess;
And when my knightly stomach is sufficed,
Why then I suck my teeth, and catechize
My picked man of countries §:-My dear sir,
(Thus, leaning on mine elbow, I begin,)
I shall beseech you―That is question now;
And then comes answer like an ABC-book ||:-
O sir, says answer, at your best command;
At your employment; at your service,sir:-
No, sir, says question, I, sweet sir, at yours:
And, so, ere answer knows what question
(Saving in dialogue of compliment; [would,
And talking of the Alps and Apennines,
The Pyrenean, and the river Po,)
It draws towards supper in conclusion so.
But this is worshipful society,
And fits the mounting spirit, like myself:
For he is but a bastard to the time,
That doth not smack of observation:
(And so am I, whether I smack, or no ;)
And not alone in habit and device,
Exterior form, outward accoutrement;
But from the inward motion to deliver
Sweet, sweet, sweet poison for the age's tooth:
Which, though I will not practise to deceive,
Yet, to avoid deceit, I mean to learn;
For it shall strew the footsteps of my rising.—
But who comes in such haste, in riding robes?
What woman-post is this? hath she no husband,
That will take pains to blow a horn before her?
Enter Lady FAULCONBRIDGE and JAMES
GURNEY.

Lady F. Where is that slave, thy brother?

where is he?

That holds in chase mine honour up and down?
Bas. My brother Robert? old sir Robert's son?
Colbrand the giant, that same mighty man?
Is it sir Robert's son, that you seek so?

Lady F. Sir Robert's son! Ay, thou unre-
verend boy,
[Robert?
Sir Robert's son! Why scorn'st thou at sir
He is sir Robert's son; and so art thou.

Bast. James Gurney, wilt thou give us leave
Gur. Good leave, good Philip. [awhile?
Bast.
Philip?-sparrow!-James,
There's toys abroad¶; anon I'll tell thee more.
[Exit GURNEY.

Madam, I was not old sir Robert's son;
Sir Robert might have eat his part in me
Upon Good-Friday, and ne'er broke his fast:
Sir Robert could do well; marry, (to confess!)
Could he get me? Sir Robert could not do it;
We know his handy-work:-Therefore,good mo
To whom am I beholden for these limbs? [ther,
Sir Robert never holp to make this leg.

Lady F. Hast thou conspired with thy bro-
ther too,
[honour?
That for thine own gain shouldst defend mine
What means this scorn, thou most untoward
knave?
[lisco-like**:

Bast. Knight, knight, good mother, Basi-
What! I am dubb'd; I have it on my shoulder.
But, mother, I am not sir Robert's son;

I have disclaim'd sir Robert, and my land;
Legitimation, name, and all is gone:
Then, good my mother, let me know my father;
Some proper man, I hope; Who was it, mother?
Lady F. Hast thou denied thyself a Faulcon-
bridge?

Bast. As faithfully as I deny the devil.
Lady F. King Richard Coeur-de-lion was

thy father;

By long and vehement suit I was seduced
To make room for him in my husband's bed:-
Heaven lay not my transgression to my charge!
Thou art the issue of my dear offence,
Which was so strongly urged, past my defence.

Bast. Now, by this light, were I to get again,
Madam, I would not wish a better father.
Some sins do bear their privilege on earth,
And so doth yours; your fault was not your folly:
Needs must you lay your heart at his dispose,—
Subjected tribute to commanding love,-
Against whose fury and unmatched force,
The aweless lion could not wage the fight, [hand
Nor keep his princely heart from Richard's
He, that perforce robs lions of their hearts,
May easily win a woman's. Ay, my mother,
With all my heart I thank thee for my father!
Who lives and dares but say, thou didst not wel
When I was got, I'll send his soul to hell.
Come, lady, I will show thee to my kin;

And they shall say, when Richard me begot,
If thou hadst said him nay, it had been sin;
Who says it was, he lies; I say, 'twas not.
[Exeunt.

Ome! it is my mother :-How now, good lady?
Good evening. + Respectable. Change of condition. My travelled fop. Catechism.
Idle reports. ** A character in an old Drama called Soliman and Perseda,