Read King John & Henry VIII Online
Authors: William Shakespeare
King John & Henry VIII (45 page)
Will make my boldness manners.—
Now
186
good angels
Fly o’er thy royal head, and shade thy person
Under their blessèd wings.
KING HENRY VIII
Now by thy looks
I guess thy message.
Is the queen delivered
190
?
Say, ‘Ay, and of a boy.’
OLD LADY
Ay, ay, my liege,
And of a lovely boy: the God of heaven
Both now and ever bless her. ’Tis a
girl
194
Promises
195
boys hereafter. Sir, your queen
Desires your visitation,
and
196
to be
Acquainted with this stranger: ’tis as like you
As cherry is to cherry.
Exit King
OLD LADY
An hundred marks? By this light, I’ll ha’ more.
An ordinary
groom
is
for
203
such payment.
I will have more, or scold it out of him.
Said I for this, the girl was like to him? I’ll
Have more, or else unsay’t: and now, while ’tis
hot
206
,
Exit
[
Old
]
Lady
[
with Lovell
]
running scene 13
Enter Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury
CRANMER
I hope I am not too late, and yet the gentleman
That was sent to me from the council prayed me
To make great haste. All
fast
3
? What means this? Ho!
Who waits there?
Enter
[
Door
]
Keeper
Sure
4
you know me?
KEEPER
Yes, my lord,
But yet I cannot help you.
CRANMER
Why?
KEEPER
Your grace must wait till you be called for.
Enter Doctor Butts
[
passing over the stage
]
CRANMER
So
9
.
Aside
DOCTOR BUTTS
This is a piece of malice. I am glad
I came this way so
happily
11
. The king
Exit
[
Doctor
]
Butts
Aside
CRANMER
’Tis Butts,
The king’s physician: as he passed along
How earnestly he cast his eyes upon me:
Pray heaven he
sound
16
not my disgrace: for certain
This is of purpose
laid
17
by some that hate me —
God
turn
18
their hearts, I never sought their malice —
To quench mine honour: they would shame to make me
Wait else at door, a fellow councillor,
’Mong boys, grooms, and lackeys. But their pleasures
Must be fulfilled, and I
attend
22
with patience.
Enter the King
[
Henry
]
and
[
Doctor
]
Butts at a window
above
DOCTOR BUTTS
I’ll show your grace the strangest sight—
KING HENRY VIII
What’s that, Butts?
DOCTOR BUTTS
I think your highness saw this many a day.
KING HENRY VIII
Body o’me
26
, where is it?
DOCTOR BUTTS
There, my lord:
The high promotion of his grace of Canterbury,
Who holds his state
at door, ’mongst
pursuivants
29
,
Pages, and
footboys
30
.
KING HENRY VIII
Ha? ’Tis he, indeed.
Is this the honour they do one another?
’Tis well there’s
one above ’em
33
yet: I had thought
They had
parted
so much
honesty
34
among ’em —
At least good manners — as not thus to
suffer
35
A man of his
place
36
, and so near our favour,
To
dance attendance
37
on their lordships’ pleasures —
And at the door, too, like a
post
with
packets
38
.
By holy Mary, Butts, there’s knavery:
Let ’em alone, and draw the curtain
close
40
:
We shall hear more anon.
[
Exeunt above
]
A council table brought in with chairs and stools, and placed under the
state
. Enter Lord Chancellor, places himself at the upper end of the table, on the left hand: a seat being left void
above
him, as for Canterbury’s seat. Duke of Suffolk, Duke of Norfolk, Surrey, Lord Chamberlain, Gardiner, seat themselves in order on each side. Cromwell at lower end, as secretary
To Cromwell
CHANCELLOR
Speak to the business, master secretary:
Why are we met in council?
CROMWELL
Please your honours,
The chief cause concerns his grace of Canterbury.
GARDINER
Has he had knowledge of it?
CROMWELL
Yes.
NORFOLK
Who waits there?
KEEPER
Without
49
, my noble lords?
GARDINER
Yes.
KEEPER
My lord archbishop:
And has done half an hour to know your pleasures.
CHANCELLOR
Let him come in.
KEEPER
Your grace may enter now.
Cranmer
[
Enters below and
]
approaches the council table
CHANCELLOR
My good lord archbishop, I’m very sorry
To sit here at this
present
56
, and behold
That
chair
57
stand empty: but we all are men,
In our own natures frail, and
capable
58
Of our
flesh
59
: few are angels: out of which frailty
And
want
60
of wisdom, you that best should teach us,
Have
misdemeaned yourself
61
, and not a little:
Toward the king first, then his laws, in filling
The whole realm, by your teaching and your chaplains
For so we are informed — with new opinions,
Divers
and dangerous, which are
heresies
65
,
And, not reformed, may prove
pernicious
66
.
GARDINER
Which reformation must be sudden too,
My noble lords, for those that tame wild horses
Pace ’em not in their hands
69
to make ’em gentle,
But stop their mouths with
stubborn
70
bits and spur ’em
Till they
obey the manage
. If we
suffer
71
,
Out of our
easiness
72
and childish pity
To one man’s honour, this contagious sickness,
Farewell all
physic
74
: and what follows then?
Commotions, uproars, with a general
taint
75
Of the whole state, as of late days our neighbours,
The
upper
Germany, can dearly witness
77
,
Yet freshly pitied in our memories.
CRANMER
My good lords, hitherto, in all the progress
Both of my life and office, I have laboured,
And with no little study, that my teaching
And the strong
course
82
of my authority
Might go one way, and safely: and the end
Was ever to do well: nor is there living —
I speak it with a
single
85
heart, my lords —
A man that more detests, more stirs against,
Both in his private conscience and his
place
87
,
Defacers of a public peace than I do:
Pray heaven the king may never find a heart
With less allegiance in it. Men that make
Envy and crooked malice nourishment
Dare bite the best. I do beseech your lordships
That in this case of justice, my accusers,
Be what they will, may stand forth face to face,
And freely
urge
95
against me.
SUFFOLK
Nay, my lord,
That cannot be: you are a councillor,
And
by that virtue
98
no man dare accuse you.
GARDINER
My lord, because we have business of more
moment
99
,
We will be
short
100
with you. ’Tis his highness’ pleasure
And our consent, for better trial of you,
From hence you be committed to the Tower,
Where being but a
private
103
man again,
You shall know many dare accuse you boldly,
More than, I fear, you are
provided
105
for.
CRANMER
Ah, my good lord of Winchester, I thank you:
You are always my good friend: if your will
pass
107
,
I shall both find your lordship judge and juror,
You are so merciful. I see your
end
109
:
’Tis my undoing. Love and meekness, lord,
Become
111
a churchman better than ambition:
Win straying souls with modesty again:
Cast none away. That I shall clear myself,
Lay all the weight ye can upon my patience,
I make as little
doubt
as you do
conscience
115
In doing daily wrongs. I could say more,
But reverence to your calling makes me modest.
GARDINER
My lord, my lord, you are a
sectary
118
,
That’s the plain truth: your
painted
gloss
discovers
119
To men that understand you,
words
120
and weakness.
CROMWELL
My lord of Winchester, you’re a little,
By your good favour
122
, too sharp: men so noble,
However faulty, yet should find respect
For what they have been: ’tis a cruelty
To load a falling man.
GARDINER
Good Master Secretary,
I
cry your honour mercy
: you may
worst
127
Of all this table say so.
CROMWELL
Why, my lord?
GARDINER
Do not I know you for a favourer
Of this new sect? Ye are not
sound
131
.
CROMWELL
Not sound?
GARDINER
Not sound, I say.
CROMWELL
Would you were half so honest:
Men’s prayers then would seek you, not their fears.
GARDINER
I shall remember this
bold
136
language.
CROMWELL
Do.
Remember your bold life, too.
CHANCELLOR
This is too much:
Forbear
140
for shame, my lords.
GARDINER
I have done.
CROMWELL
And I.
To Cranmer
