King Henry VI, Part III

King Henry VI, Part III

ACT II SCENE VI	Another part of the field.
	A loud alarum. Enter CLIFFORD, wounded
CLIFFORD	Here burns my candle out; ay, here it dies,
	Which, whiles it lasted, gave King Henry light.
	O Lancaster, I fear thy overthrow
	More than my body's parting with my soul!	5
	My love and fear glued many friends to thee;
	And, now I fall, thy tough commixture melts.
	Impairing Henry, strengthening misproud York,
	The common people swarm like summer flies;
	And whither fly the gnats but to the sun?	10
	And who shines now but Henry's enemies?
	O Phoebus, hadst thou never given consent
	That Phaethon should cheque thy fiery steeds,
	Thy burning car never had scorch'd the earth!
	And, Henry, hadst thou sway'd as kings should do,	15
	Or as thy father and his father did,
	Giving no ground unto the house of York,
	They never then had sprung like summer flies;
	I and ten thousand in this luckless realm
	Had left no mourning widows for our death;	20
	And thou this day hadst kept thy chair in peace.
	For what doth cherish weeds but gentle air?
	And what makes robbers bold but too much lenity?
	Bootless are plaints, and cureless are my wounds;
	No way to fly, nor strength to hold out flight:	25
	The foe is merciless, and will not pity;
	For at their hands I have deserved no pity.
	The air hath got into my deadly wounds,
	And much effuse of blood doth make me faint.
	Come, York and Richard, Warwick and the rest;	30
	I stabb'd your fathers' bosoms, split my breast.
	He faints
	Alarum and retreat. Enter EDWARD, GEORGE, RICHARD,MONTAGUE, WARWICK, and Soldiers
EDWARD	Now breathe we, lords: good fortune bids us pause,
	And smooth the frowns of war with peaceful looks.
	Some troops pursue the bloody-minded queen,
	That led calm Henry, though he were a king,	35
	As doth a sail, fill'd with a fretting gust,
	Command an argosy to stem the waves.
	But think you, lords, that Clifford fled with them?
WARWICK	No, 'tis impossible he should escape,
	For, though before his face I speak the words	40
	Your brother Richard mark'd him for the grave:
	And wheresoe'er he is, he's surely dead.
	CLIFFORD groans, and dies
EDWARD	Whose soul is that which takes her heavy leave?
RICHARD	A deadly groan, like life and death's departing.
EDWARD	See who it is: and, now the battle's ended,	45
	If friend or foe, let him be gently used.
RICHARD	Revoke that doom of mercy, for 'tis Clifford;
	Who not contented that he lopp'd the branch
	In hewing Rutland when his leaves put forth,
	But set his murdering knife unto the root	50
	From whence that tender spray did sweetly spring,
	I mean our princely father, Duke of York.
WARWICK	From off the gates of York fetch down the head,
	Your father's head, which Clifford placed there;
	Instead whereof let this supply the room:	55
	Measure for measure must be answered.
EDWARD	Bring forth that fatal screech-owl to our house,
	That nothing sung but death to us and ours:
	Now death shall stop his dismal threatening sound,
	And his ill-boding tongue no more shall speak.	60
WARWICK	I think his understanding is bereft.
	Speak, Clifford, dost thou know who speaks to thee?
	Dark cloudy death o'ershades his beams of life,
	And he nor sees nor hears us what we say.
RICHARD	O, would he did! and so perhaps he doth:	65
	'Tis but his policy to counterfeit,
	Because he would avoid such bitter taunts
	Which in the time of death he gave our father.
GEORGE	If so thou think'st, vex him with eager words.
RICHARD	Clifford, ask mercy and obtain no grace.	70
EDWARD	Clifford, repent in bootless penitence.
WARWICK	Clifford, devise excuses for thy faults.
GEORGE	While we devise fell tortures for thy faults.
RICHARD	Thou didst love York, and I am son to York.
EDWARD	Thou pitied'st Rutland; I will pity thee.	75
GEORGE	Where's Captain Margaret, to fence you now?
WARWICK	They mock thee, Clifford: swear as thou wast wont.
RICHARD	What, not an oath? nay, then the world goes hard
	When Clifford cannot spare his friends an oath.
	I know by that he's dead; and, by my soul,	80
	If this right hand would buy two hour's life,
	That I in all despite might rail at him,
	This hand should chop it off, and with the
	issuing blood
	Stifle the villain whose unstanched thirst	85
	York and young Rutland could not satisfy.
WARWICK	Ay, but he's dead: off with the traitor's head,
	And rear it in the place your father's stands.
	And now to London with triumphant march,
	There to be crowned England's royal king:	90
	From whence shall Warwick cut the sea to France,
	And ask the Lady Bona for thy queen:
	So shalt thou sinew both these lands together;
	And, having France thy friend, thou shalt not dread
	The scatter'd foe that hopes to rise again;	95
	For though they cannot greatly sting to hurt,
	Yet look to have them buzz to offend thine ears.
	First will I see the coronation;
	And then to Brittany I'll cross the sea,
	To effect this marriage, so it please my lord.	100
EDWARD	Even as thou wilt, sweet Warwick, let it be;
	For in thy shoulder do I build my seat,
	And never will I undertake the thing
	Wherein thy counsel and consent is wanting.
	Richard, I will create thee Duke of Gloucester,	105
	And George, of Clarence: Warwick, as ourself,
	Shall do and undo as him pleaseth best.
RICHARD	Let me be Duke of Clarence, George of Gloucester;
	For Gloucester's dukedom is too ominous.
WARWICK	Tut, that's a foolish observation:	110
	Richard, be Duke of Gloucester. Now to London,
	To see these honours in possession.
	Exeunt