P. Hen. What company?

Page. Ephesians 2, my lord; of the old church.
P. Hen. Sup any women with him?

Page. None, my lord, but old mistress Quickly, and mistress Doll Tear-sheet.

P. Hen. What pagan may that be?3

Page. A proper gentlewoman, sir, and a kinswoman of my master's.

P. Hen. Even such kin, as the parish heifers are to the town-bull. Shall we steal upon them, Ned, at supper?

-

Poins. I am your shadow, my lord; I'll follow you. P. Hen. Sirrah, you boy, and Bardolph;-no word to your master, that I am yet come to town: There's for your silence.

Bard. I have no tongue, sir.

Page. And for mine, sir,-I will govern it.

P. Hen. Fare ye well; go. [Exeunt BARDOLPH and Page.]-This Doll Tear-sheet should be some road, Poins. I warrant you, as common as the way between

Saint Alban's and London.

P. Hen. How might we see Falstaff bestow himself to-night in his true colours, and not ourselves be seen?

Poins. Put on two leather jerkins, and aprons, and wait upon him at his table as drawers.

P. Hen. From a god to a bull? a heavy descension! it was Jove's case. From a prince to a prentice? a low transformation! that shall be mine: for, in every thing, the purpose must weigh with the folly. Follow me, Ned. [Exeunt.

2 Ephesians,] Ephesian was a term in the cant of these times, perhaps, a toper.

3 What pagan may that be?] Pagan seems to have been a cant term, implying irregularity either of birth or manners.

SCENE III.

Warkworth. Before the Castle.

Enter NORTHUMBERLAND, Lady NORTHUMBErland, and Lady PERCY.

North. I pray thee, loving wife, and gentle daughter, Give even way unto my rough affairs:

Put not on you the visage of the times,
And be, like them, to Percy troublesome.

Lady N. I have given over, I will speak no more: Do what you will; your wisdom be your guide. North. Alas, sweet wife, my honour is at pawn; And, but my going, nothing can redeem it.

Lady P. O, yet, for God's sake, go not to these wars!
The time was, father, that you broke your word,
When you were more endear'd to it than now;

When your own Percy, when my heart's dear Harry
Threw many a northward look, to see his father
Bring up his powers; but he did long in vain.
Who then persuaded you to stay at home?
There were two honours lost; yours, and your son's.
For yours, may heavenly glory brighten it!

For his, it stuck upon him, as the sun

In the grey vault of heaven: and, by his light,
Did all the chivalry of England move

To do brave acts; he was, indeed, the glass
Wherein the noble youth did dress themselves.
He had no legs, that practis'd not his gait :

And speaking thick, which nature made his blemish,
Became the accents of the valiant;

For those that could speak low, and tardily,
Would turn their own perfection to abuse,
To seem like him: So that, in speech, in gait,
In diet, in affections of delight,

In military rules, humours of blood,

He was the mark and glass, copy and book,

That fashion'd others. And him, -O wondrous him! him did you leave,

O miracle of men!

(Second to none, unseconded by you,)

To look upon the hideous god of war

In disadvantage; to abide a field,

Where nothing but the sound of Hotspur's name
Did seem defensible* : so you left him :
Never, O never, do his ghost the wrong,
To hold your honour more precise and nice
With others, than with him; let them alone;
The marshal, and the archbishop, are strong:
Had my sweet Harry had but half their numbers,
To-day might I, hanging on Hotspur's neck,
Have talk'd of Monmouth's grave.

North.

Beshrew your heart,

Fair daughter! you do draw my spirits from me,
With new lamenting ancient oversights.

But I must go, and meet with danger there;

Or it will seek me in another place,

And find me worse provided.

Lady N.

O, fly to Scotland,

Till that the nobles, and the armed commons,

Have of their puissance made a little taste.

Lady P. If they get ground and vantage of the king, Then join you with them, like a rib of steel,

To make strength stronger; but, for all our loves,
First let them try themselves: So did your son;
He was so suffer'd; so came I a widow;
And never shall have length of life enough,
To rain upon remembrance with mine eyes,
That it may grow and sprout as high as heaven,
For recordation to my noble husband.

+ Did seem defensible:] Defensible does not in this place mean capable of defence, but bearing strength, furnishing the means of defence; the passive for the active participle.

To rain upon remembrance-] Alluding to the plant rosemary, so called, and used in funerals.

North. Come, come, go in with me: 'tis with my

mind,

As with the tide swell'd up unto its height,
That makes a still-stand, running neither way.
Fain would I go to meet the archbishop,
But many thousand reasons hold me back :
I will resolve for Scotland; there am I,
Till time and vantage crave my company.

[Exeunt.

SCENE IV.

London. A Room in the Boar's Head Tavern, in Eastcheap. +

Enter Two Drawers.

1 Draw. What the devil hast thou brought there? apple Johns? thou know'st, sir John cannot endure an apple-John.

2 Draw. Mass, thou sayest true: The prince once set a dish of apple-Johns before him, and told him, there were five more sir Johns: and, putting off his hat, said, I will now take my leave of these six dry, round, old, withered knights. It angered him to the heart but he hath forgot that.

1 Draw. Why then, cover, and set them down: And see if thou canst find out Sneak's noise; mistress Tear-sheet would fain hear some musick. Despatch: — The room where they supped, is too hot; they'll come in straight.

2 Draw. Sirrah, here will be the prince, and master Poins anon and they will put on two of our jerkins,

+ The Boar's Head was near the prince's residence, a mansion called Cold-harbour, near All-hallow's church, Upper Thames

street.

6

· Sneak's noise;] Sneak was a street minstrel, and therefore the drawer goes out to listen if he can hear him in the neighbourhood. JOHNSON.

and aprons; and sir John must not know of it: Bardolph hath brought word.

1 Draw. By the mass, here will be old utis7: It will be an excellent stratagem.

2 Draw. I'll see, if I can find out Sneak.

Enter Hostess and DOLL TEAR-SHEET.

[Exit.

Host. I'faith, sweet heart, methinks now you are in an excellent good temperality: your pulsidge beats as extraordinarily as heart would desire; and your colour, I warrant you, is as red as any rose: But, i'faith, you have drunk too much canaries; and that's a marvellous searching wine, and it perfumes the blood ere one can say,What's this? How do you now?

Dol. Better than I was. Hem.

Host. Why, that's well said; a good heart's worth gold. Look, here comes sir John.

Enter FALSTAFF, singing.

Fal. When Arthur first in courts - Empty the jordan. And was a worthy king: [Exit Drawer.] How now, mistress Doll?

Host. Sick of a calm9: yea, good sooth.

Fal. So is all her sect; an they be once in a calm, they are sick.

Dol. You muddy rascal, is that all the comfort you give me?

Fal. You make fat rascals', mistress Doll.

7 here will be old utis :] Utis, an old word yet in use in some counties, signifying a merry festival, from the French huit, octo.

9 When Arthur first in court-] The entire ballad is published in the first volume of Dr. Percy's Reliques of ancient English Poetry.

9 Sick of a calm:] Perhaps she means to say of a qualm.

1 You make fat rascals,] Falstaff alludes to a phrase of the forest. Lean deer are called rascal deer. He tells her she calls him wrong, being fat he cannot be a rascal. JOHNSON.