I must be held a rancorous enemy. Cannot a plain man live, and think no harm, Grey. To whom in all this presence speaks your grace? Glo. To thee, that hast nor honesty, nor grace. When have I injur'd thee? when done thee wrong?Or thee?or thee?-or any of your faction? A plague upon you all! His royal grace,- But you must trouble him with lewd complaints.? matter: The king, of his own royal disposition, Glo. I cannot tell;-The world is grown so bad, That wrens may prey where eagles dare not perch: Since every Jack became a gentleman,' There's many a gentle person made a Jack. speak fair, Smile in men's faces, smooth, deceive, and cog, Duck with French nods and apish courtesy,] An importation of artificial manners seems to have afforded our ancient poets a never failing topick of invective. with lewd complaints.] Lewd, in the present instance, signifies rude, ignorant; from the Anglo-Saxon Laewede, a Laick. Chaucer often uses the word lewd, both for a laick and an ignorant person. Since every Jack became a gentleman,] This proverbial expression at once demonstrates the origin of the term Jack so often used by Shakspeare. It means one of the very lowest class of people, among whom this name is of the most common and familiar kind. Q. Eliz. Come, come, we know your meaning, brother Gloster; You envy my advancement, and my friends; God grant, we never may have need of you! Glo. Meantime, God grants that we have need of you: Our brother is imprison'd by your means, Held in contempt; while great promotions That scarce, some two days since, were worth a noble. height From that contented hap which I enjoy'd, Against the duke of Clarence, but have been My lord, you do me shameful injury, Falsely to draw me in these vile suspects. Of Glo. You may deny that you were not the cause my lord Hastings' late imprisonment. Riv. She may, my lord; for Glo. She may, lord Rivers ?-why, who knows She may do more, sir, than denying that: Glo. What, marry, may she? marry with a king, A bachelor, a handsome stripling too : I wis, your grandam had a worser match. Q. Eliz. My lord of Gloster, I have too long borne Your blunt upbraidings, and your bitter scoffs : By heaven, I will acquaint his majesty, Of those gross taunts I often have endur'd. I had rather be a country servant-maid, Enter Queen MARGARET, behind. Q. Mar. And lessen'd be that small, God, I beseech thee! Thy honour, state, and seat, is due to me. Glo. What? threat you me with telling of the king? I dare adventure to be sent to the Tower. Glo. Ere you were queen, ay, or your husband king, I was a pack-horse in his great affairs; To royalize3 his blood, I spilt mine own. Q. Mar. Ay, and much better blood than his, or thine. Glo. In all which time, you, and your husband Grey, Were factious for the house of Lancaster ; And, Rivers, so were you :-Was not your husband In Margaret's battle at Saint Albans slain? Let me put in your minds, if you forget, What you have been ere now, and what you are; Withal, what I have been, and what I am. 2 -my pains] My labours, my toils. 3 royalize i. e. to make royal. 4 Margaret's battle-] Is-Margaret's army. Q. Mar. A murd'rous villain, and so still thou art. Glo. Poor Clarence did forsake his father Warwick, Ay, and forswore himself,-Which Jesu pardon ! Q. Mar. Which God revenge! Glo. To fight on Edward's party, for the crown ; And, for his meed, poor lord, he is mew'd up: I would to God, my heart were flint like Edward's, Or Edward's soft and pitiful, like mine'; I am too childish-foolish for this world. Q. Mar. Hie thee to hell for shame, and leave this world, Thou cacodamon! there thy kingdom is. Riv. My lord of Gloster, in those busy days, Which here you urge, to prove us enemies, We follow'd then our lord, our lawful king; So should we you, if you should be our king. Glo. If I should be?--I had rather be a pedlar: Far be it from my heart, the thought thereof! Q. Eliz. As little joy, my lord, as you suppose You should enjoy, were you this country's king; As little joy you may suppose in me, That I enjoy, being the queen thereof. Q. Mar. A little joy enjoys the queen thereof; For I am she, and altogether joyless. I can no longer hold me patient.- [Advancing, Hear me, you wrangling pirates, that fall out In sharing that which you have pill'd from me : Which of you trembles not, that looks on me? If not, that, I being queen, you bow like subjects; Yet that, by you depos'd, you quake like rebels:→→→→ Ah, gentle villain, do not turn away Glo, Foul wrinkled witch, what mak'st thou in my sight ?? which you have pill'd from me :] To pill is to pillage. 6 Ah, gentle villain,] Gentle appears to be taken in its common acceptation, but to be used ironically. 7what mak'st thou in my sight?] An obsolete expression for-what dost thou in my sight. Q. Mar. But repetition of what thou hast marr'd; That will I make, before I let thee go. Glo. Wert thou not banished on pain of death? Q. Mar. I was; but I do find more pain in banishment, Than death can yield me here by my abode. Glo. The curse my noble father laid on thee,— Q. Eliz. So just is God, to right the innocent. Hast. O, 'twas the foulest deed to slay that babe, And the most merciless, that e'er was heard of. Riv. Tyrants themselves wept when it was reported. Dors. No man but prophesied revenge for it. Buck. Northumberland, then present, wept to see it. Q.Mar. What! were you snarling all, before I came, Ready to catch each other by the throat, And turn you all hatred now on me? your Did York's dread curse prevail so much with heaven, 8 — hath plagu'd thy bloody deed.] To plague, in ancient language, is to punish, |