DUCH. I long with all my heart to see the prince; I hope he is much grown since last I saw him.

Q. ELIZ. But I hear, no; they say, my son of York Hath almost overta'en him in his growth.

YORK. Ay, mother, but I would not have it so.
DUCH. Why, my young cousin, it is good to grow.
YORK. Grandam, one night as we did sit at supper,
My uncle Rivers talk'd how I did grow

More than my brother: Ay, quoth my uncle Gloster,
Small herbs have grace, great weeds do grow apace :
And since, methinks, I would not grow so fast,
Because sweet flowers are slow, and weeds make haste.
DUCH. Good faith, good faith, the saying did not hold
In him that did object the same to thee:

He was the wretched'st thing when he was young,
So long a growing and so leisurely,

That, if this were a rule, he should be gracious."a

ARCH. And so, no doubt, he is, my gracious madam."
DUCH. I hope, he is; but yet let mothers doubt.
YORK. Now, by my troth, if I had been remember'd,

I could have given my uncle's grace a flout,

That should have nearer touch'd his growth than he did mine." DUCH. How, my pretty † York? I pr'ythee let me hear it. YORK. Marry, they say my uncle grew so fast

That he could gnaw a crust at two hours old;

'Twas full two years ere I could get a tooth.

Grandam, this would have been a biting jest.

DUCH. I pr'ythee, pretty York, who told thee this?
YORK. Grandam, his nurse.

DUCH. His nurse! why she was dead ere thou wast born.
YORK. If 't were not she, I cannot tell who told me.
Q. ELIZ. A parlous boy :-go to, you are too shrewd.
ARCH. Good madam, be not angry with the child.
Q. ELIZ. Pitchers have ears.

ARCH. Here comes your son,e lord marquis Dorset.

(*) First folio, good.

That, if this were a rule, &c.] The folio reads,-

(+) First folio, yong.

"That if his rule were true."

And so, no doubt, &c.] The quartos have,

"Why madame, so no doubt he is."

e That should, &c.] The folio reading is,—

"To touch his growth, neerer then he toucht mine."

A biting jest.] The quartos spoil the jest by reading, prettie. e Here comes your son, &c.] In the folio we read as follows:

"Enter a Messenger.

ARCH. Here comes a Messenger. What Newes?

MES. Such newes my Lord, as greeves me to report.
Qu. How doth the Prince?

MES. Well Madam, and in health.

DUT. What is thy Newes?"

Enter DORSET.

What news, lord marquis?

DORS. Such news, my lord, as grieves me to unfold.
Q. ELIZ. How fares the prince?
DORS.

DUCH. What is the news then?

Well, madam, and in health.

DORS. Lord Rivers, and lord Grey,a are sent to Pomfret, With them sir Thomas Vaughan, prisoners.

*

DORS. The sum of all I can, I have disclos'd:
Why or for what, these† nobles were committed,
Is all unknown to me, my gracious lord.

Q. ELIZ. Ay me, I see the downfall of our house!
The tiger now hath seiz'd the gentle hind;
Insulting tyranny begins to jet §

Upon the innocent and awless throne:-
Welcome destruction, blood, and massacre!
I see, as in a map, the end of all.

DUCH. Accursed and unquiet wrangling days,
How many of you have mine eyes beheld!
My husband lost his life to get the crown;
And often up and down my sons were toss'd,
For me to joy, and weep, their gain and loss:
And being seated, and domestic broils

Clean over-blown, themselves, the conquerors,
Make war upon themselves; brother to brother,
Blood to blood, self against self:-0, preposterous
And frantic outrage, end thy damned spleen;
Or let me die, to look on death || no more!

Q. ELIZ. Come, come, my boy, we will to sanctuary.-
Madam, farewell.

DUCH.

Stay, I will go with you.

Q. ELIZ. You have no cause.b

(*) First folio, And with.

(†) First folio, the.
(5) First folio, Iutt.

() First folio, earth.

(1) First folio, ruine of my

Lord Rivers, and Lord Grey, &c.] Perhaps Capell's rhythmical arrangement of these lines might be adopted with advantage.

ARCH.

My gracious lady, go,

[To the QUEEN.

The seal I keep; and so betide to me,

And thither bear your treasure and your goods.
For my part, I'll resign unto your grace

As well I tender you and all of yours!

Come, I'll conduct you to the sanctuary. (2)

[Exeunt.

ACT III.

SCENE I.-London. A Street.

Trumpets sound. Enter the PRINCE OF WALES, GLOUCESTER,
BUCKINGHAM, CARDINAL BOURCHIER, and others.

BUCK. Welcome, sweet prince, to London, to your chamber. (1)
GLO. Welcome, dear cousin, my thought's sovereign:

The weary way hath made you melancholy.

PRINCE. No, uncle; but our crosses on the way

Have made it tedious, wearisome, and heavy:

I want more uncles here to welcome me.

GLO. Sweet prince, the untainted virtue of your years Hath not yet div'd into the world's deceit;

Nort 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. God keep me from false friends! but they were none.
GLO. My lord, the mayor of London comes to greet you.

Enter the Lord Mayor, and his Train.

MAY. God bless your grace with health and happy days!
PRINCE. I thank you, good my lord;-and thank you

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!

all.-a

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

(*) First folio, Go.

(†) First folio, No.

And thank you all.] Here, in all modern editions, we find a stage direction, "Exeunt Mayor, &c.;" but query, upon what authority, and with what necessity, is this important official so abruptly dismissed?

Enter HASTINGS.

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 taken sanctuary: the tender prince

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

BUCK. Fie, what an indirect and peevish course
Is this of hers!-Lord cardinal, will your grace
Persuade the queen to send the duke of York
Unto his princely brother presently?

If she deny,-lord Hastings, go with him,
And from her jealous arms pluck him perforce.
CAR. My lord of Buckingham, if my weak oratory
Can from his mother win the duke of York,
Anon expect him here: but if she be obdurate
To mild entreaties, God in heaven* forbid
We should infringe the holy privilege
Of blessed sanctuary! not for all this land
Would I be guilty of so deep† a sin.

my lord,

BUCK. You are too senseless-obstinate,a
Too ceremonious, and traditional,
Weigh it but with the grossness of this age: (2)
You break not sanctuary in seizing him;
The benefit thereof is always granted

To those whose dealings have deserv'd the place,
And those who have the wit to claim the place:
This prince hath neither claim'd it, nor deserv'd it;
And therefore, in mine opinion, cannot have it:
Then, taking him from thence that is not there,
You break no privilege nor charter there.
Oft have I heard of sanctuary-men;

But sanctuary-children, ne'er till now.

CAR. My lord, you shall o'errule my mind for once.— Come on, lord Hastings, will you go with me?

HAST. I go, my lord.

PRINCE. Good lords, make all the speedy haste you may.

[Exeunt CARDINAL and HASTINGS.

Say, uncle Gloster, if our brother come,

Where shall we sojourn till our coronation?

GLO. Where it seems best unto your royal self.

If I may counsel you, some day or two,

Your highness shall repose you at the Tower:

(*) First folio omits, in heaven.

(t) First folio, great.

(4) First folio, think'st.

Too senseless-obstinate,-] A misprint probably for needsless-obstinate.

Grossness of this age:] The quarto, 1622, reads, "greatness of his age;" Warbur ton, "the greenness of his age:" and Mr. Collier's annotator, "the goodness of his age." See note on the passage in the Illustrative Comments to Act III.

Then where you please, and 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?

GLO. He did, my gracious lord, begin that place;
Which since succeeding ages have re-edified.
PRINCE. Is it upon record, or else reported
Successively from age to age, he built it?
BUCK. Upon record, my gracious lord.

PRINCE. But say, my lord, it were not register'd;
Methinks the truth should live from age to age,
As 't were retail'd to all posterity,

Even to the general all-ending* day.

GLO. [Aside.] So wise, so young, they say, do ne'er live long.
PRINCE. What say you, uncle?

GLO. I say, without charácters, fame lives long.

Thus, like the formal Vice, Iniquity,

I moralize two meanings in one word.a

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 no conquest of this † conqueror;
For now he lives in fame, though not in life.-
I'll tell you what, my cousin Buckingham-
BUCK. What, my gracious lord?

PRINCE. An if I live until I be a man,
I'll win our ancient right in France again,
Or die a soldier, as I liv'd a king.

[Aside.

GLO. [Aside.] Short summers lightly have a forward spring.
BUCK. Now, in good time, here comes the duke of York.

Enter YORK, HASTINGS, and the CARDINAL.

PRINCE. Richard of York! how fares our loving ‡ brother?
YORK. Well, my dread § lord; so must I call you now.
PRINCE. Ay, brother, to our grief, as it is yours:

First folio, generall ending day.

First folio, Noble.

(†) First folio, his.

(S) First folio, deare.

Thus, like the formal Vice, Iniquity,

I moralize two meanings in one word.]

On what expression does the equivocation of Gloucester depend? Johnson thinks he alludes to the line,

"So wise, so young, they say, dɔ ne'er live long."

In which he conceals under a proverb, his design of hastening the Prince's death. Mason conceives the ambiguity to lie in the words "live long," and Warburton adopts the extraordinary change of,

May he not refer to the double sense of the word characters, which signifies both the signs by which we communicate ideas, and the good or evil qualities which distinguish us? For an account of the Vice, see note (5), p. 337, Vol. II.

Lightly-] Commonly, usually.

VOL. IV.

I