King John & Henry VIII (39 page)

NORFOLK
    If you will now unite in your complaints,

    And
force
them with
a constancy
²
, the cardinal

    Cannot stand under them. If you
omit
³

    The offer of this time, I cannot promise

    But that you shall sustain more new disgraces,

    With these you bear already.

SURREY
    I am joyful

    To meet the least occasion that may give me

    Remembrance of my father-in-law the
duke
⁹
,

    To be revenged on
him
¹⁰
.

SUFFOLK
    Which of the peers

    Have
uncontemned
¹²
gone by him, or at least

    Strangely
neglected
¹³
? When did he regard

    The stamp of nobleness in any person

    
Out of
¹⁵
himself?

CHAMBERLAIN
    My lords, you speak your pleasures:

    What he deserves of you and me I know:

    
What we can do to him, though now the time

    
Gives way
to us, I much
fear
¹⁹
. If you cannot

    Bar his access to th’king, never attempt

    Anything on him: for he hath a witchcraft

    Over the king
in’s
²²
tongue.

NORFOLK
    O, fear him not:

    His spell in that is
out
²⁴
: the king hath found

    Matter against him that forever mars

    The honey of his language. No,
he’s
²⁶
settled,

    Not to
come off
, in
his
²⁷
displeasure.

SURREY
    Sir,

    I should be glad to hear such news as this

    Once every hour.

NORFOLK
    Believe it, this is true.

    In the divorce his
contrary
³²
proceedings

    Are all
unfolded
³³
, wherein he appears

    As I would wish mine enemy.

SURREY
    How came

    His
practices
³⁶
to light?

SUFFOLK
    Most strangely.

SURREY
    O, how, how?

SUFFOLK
    The cardinal’s letters to the Pope
miscarried
³⁹
,

    And came to th’eye o’th’king, wherein was read

    How that the cardinal did entreat his holiness

    To
stay
⁴²
the judgment o’th’divorce, for if

    It did take place, ‘I do’, quoth he, ‘perceive

    My king is tangled in affection to

    A
creature
⁴⁵
of the queen’s, Lady Anne Bullen.’

SURREY
    Has the king this?

SUFFOLK
    Believe it.

SURREY
    Will this work?

CHAMBERLAIN
    The king in this
perceives him
how he
coasts
⁴⁹

    And hedges his own way. But in this point

    All his tricks founder, and he brings his
physic
⁵¹

    After his patient’s death: the king already

    Hath married the fair lady.

SURREY
    Would he had.

SUFFOLK
    May you be happy in your wish, my lord,

    For I profess you have it.

SURREY
    Now, all my joy

    
Trace the conjunction
⁵⁸
.

SUFFOLK
    My amen to’t.

NORFOLK
    
All men’s
⁶⁰
.

SUFFOLK
    There’s order given for her coronation:

    
Marry
, this is yet but
young
, and
may be left
⁶²

    To some ears unrecounted. But, my lords,

    She is a
gallant
creature, and
complete
⁶⁴

    In mind and feature. I
persuade me
⁶⁵
, from her

    Will
fall
⁶⁶
some blessing to this land, which shall

    In it be
memorized
⁶⁷
.

SURREY
    But will the king

    
Digest
⁶⁹
this letter of the cardinal’s?

    The Lord forbid!

NORFOLK
    Marry, amen.

SUFFOLK
    No, no:

    There be more wasps that buzz about his nose

    Will make this sting the sooner. Cardinal Campeius

    Is stol’n away to Rome: hath ta’en no leave:

    Has left the
cause
o’th’king
unhandled
⁷⁶
, and

    
Is posted
⁷⁷
as the agent of our cardinal

    
To second all his plot. I do assure you

    The king cried ‘Ha!’ at this.

CHAMBERLAIN
    Now, God incense him,

    And let him cry ‘Ha!’ louder.

NORFOLK
    But, my lord,

    When returns Cranmer?

SUFFOLK
    
He is returned in his opinions
⁸⁴
, which

    Have satisfied the king for his divorce,

    Together with all famous colleges

    Almost in Christendom: shortly, I believe,

    His second marriage shall be
published
⁸⁸
, and

    Her coronation. Katherine no more

    Shall be called ‘Queen’, but ‘Princess Dowager’

    And ‘widow to Prince Arthur’.

NORFOLK
    This same Cranmer’s

    A worthy fellow, and hath ta’en much pain

    In the king’s business.

SUFFOLK
    He has, and we shall see him

    For it an archbishop.

NORFOLK
    So I hear.

SUFFOLK
    ’Tis so.

    The cardinal.

NORFOLK
    Observe, observe, he’s
moody
¹⁰⁰
.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    The
packet
¹⁰¹
, Cromwell: gave’t you the king?

CROMWELL
    To his own hand, in’s bedchamber.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    
Looked he
¹⁰³

    O’th’inside of the paper?

CROMWELL
    
Presently
¹⁰⁵

    He did unseal them, and the first he viewed,

    He did it with a serious mind: a
heed
¹⁰⁷

    
Was in his countenance. You he bade

    Attend him here this morning.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    Is he ready

    To come
abroad
¹¹¹
?

CROMWELL
    I think by
this
¹¹²
he is.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    Leave me awhile.—

    It shall be to the Duchess of Alençon,

    The French king’s sister: he shall marry her.

    Anne Bullen? No, I’ll no Anne Bullens for him:

    There’s more in’t than fair
visage
¹¹⁷
. Bullen?

    No, we’ll no Bullens. Speedily I wish

    To hear from Rome. The Marchioness of Pembroke?

NORFOLK
    He’s discontented.

SUFFOLK
    Maybe he hears the king

    Does whet his anger to him.

SURREY
    Sharp enough,

    Lord, for thy justice.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    The
late
¹²⁵
queen’s gentlewoman? A knight’s daughter,

    To be her mistress’ mistress? The queen’s queen?

    This candle burns not
clear
: ’tis I must
snuff it
¹²⁷
,

    Then out it goes. What though I know her virtuous

    And well deserving? Yet I know her for

    A
spleeny Lutheran
, and not
wholesome
¹³⁰
to

    Our cause, that she should
lie i’th’bosom of
¹³¹

    Our
hard-ruled
¹³²
king. Again, there is sprung up

    An heretic, an
arch-one
¹³³
: Cranmer, one

    
Hath
¹³⁴
crawled into the favour of the king,

    And is his oracle.

NORFOLK
    He is vexed at something.

SURREY
    I would ’twere something that would
fret
¹³⁷
the string,

    The
master-cord
on’s
¹³⁸
heart!

SUFFOLK
    The king, the king!

KING HENRY VIII
    What piles of wealth hath he accumulated

    To his own
portion
¹⁴¹
? And what expense by th’hour

    Seems to flow from him? How i’th’name of thrift

    Does he rake this together?— Now, my lords,

    Saw you the cardinal?

NORFOLK
    My lord, we have

    Stood here observing him. Some strange
commotion
¹⁴⁶

    Is in his brain: he bites his lip, and starts,

    Stops on a sudden, looks upon the ground,

    Then lays his finger on his temple,
straight
¹⁴⁹

    Springs out into fast gait, then stops again,

    Strikes his breast hard, and anon he casts

    His eye
against
¹⁵²
the moon: in most strange postures

    We have seen him set himself.

KING HENRY VIII
    It may well be,

    There is a mutiny in’s mind. This morning

    Papers of state he sent me to peruse,

    As I required: and
wot
¹⁵⁷
you what I found

    There, on my conscience put unwittingly?

    Forsooth, an inventory, thus
importing
¹⁵⁹

    The
several parcels
of his
plate
¹⁶⁰
, his treasure,

    Rich
stuffs
and
ornaments of household
¹⁶¹
, which

    I find at such
proud rate
, that it
outspeaks
¹⁶²

    Possession of a subject.

NORFOLK
    It’s heaven’s will:

    Some spirit put this paper in the packet,

    To bless your eye
withal
¹⁶⁶
.

KING HENRY VIII
    If we did think

    His
contemplation
¹⁶⁸
were above the earth,

    And fixed on spiritual object, he
should
¹⁶⁹
still

    Dwell in his musings: but I am afraid

    His thinkings are
below the moon
¹⁷¹
, not worth

    His serious considering.

CARDINAL WOLSEY
    Heaven forgive me!—

    Ever God bless your highness.

KING HENRY VIII
    Good, my lord,

    You are full of heavenly
stuff
¹⁷⁶
, and bear the inventory

    Of your best
graces
¹⁷⁷
in your mind, the which

    You were now running o’er: you have scarce time

    To steal from spiritual
leisure
¹⁷⁹
a brief span

    To
keep your earthly audit
¹⁸⁰
: sure, in that

    I deem you an
ill husband
, and am
glad
¹⁸¹

    To have you therein my companion.