King Lear (9 page)

This milky gentleness and course of yours

Though I condemn not, yet,
under pardon
³¹⁸
,

You are much more
at task
³¹⁹
for want of wisdom

Than praised for harmful mildness.

ALBANY
    How far your eyes may pierce I cannot tell:

Striving to better, oft we mar what’s well.

GONERIL
    Nay, then—

ALBANY
    Well, well,
th’event
³²⁴
.

LEAR
    Go you
before
¹
to Gloucester with these letters.

Acquaint my daughter no further with anything you know

than comes from her
demand out of
³
the letter. If your

diligence be not speedy, I shall be there afore you.

KENT
    I will not sleep, my lord, till I have delivered your

letter.

FOOL
    If a man’s brains were in’s heels, were’t not in

danger of
kibes
⁸
?

LEAR
    Ay, boy.

FOOL
    Then, I prithee be merry: thy
wit
shall not go
slip-
¹⁰

shod
.

LEAR
    Ha, ha, ha!

FOOL
    
Shalt
¹³
see thy other daughter will use thee kindly, for

though she’s as like this as a
crab’s
¹⁴
like an apple, yet I can tell

what I can tell.

LEAR
    What canst tell, boy?

FOOL
    She will taste as like this as a crab does to a crab.

Thou canst tell why one’s nose stands i’th’middle
on’s
¹⁸
face?

LEAR
    No.

FOOL
    Why, to keep one’s eyes of either
side’s
²⁰
nose, that

what a man cannot smell out he may spy into.

LEAR
    I did
her
²²
wrong—

FOOL
    Canst tell how an oyster makes his shell?

LEAR
    No.

FOOL
    Nor I neither; but I can tell why a snail has a house.

LEAR
    Why?

FOOL
    Why, to put’s head in, not to give it away to his

daughters and leave his horns without a case.

LEAR
    I will forget my nature. So kind a father!— Be my

horses ready?

FOOL
    Thy
asses
are gone about ’em. The reason why
the
³¹

seven stars are no more than seven is a
pretty
³²
reason.

LEAR
    Because they are not eight.

FOOL
    Yes, indeed: thou wouldst make a good fool.

LEAR
    To take’t
again
³⁵
perforce. Monster ingratitude!

FOOL
    If thou wert my fool, nuncle, I’d have thee beaten

for being old before thy time.

LEAR
    How’s that?

FOOL
    Thou shouldst not have been old till thou hadst

been wise.

LEAR
    O, let me not be mad, not mad, sweet heaven!

Keep me in
temper
⁴²
: I would not be mad!—

How now, are the horses ready?

GENTLEMAN
Ready, my lord.

LEAR
    Come, boy.

FOOL
    She that’s a
maid
⁴⁶
now, and laughs at my departure,

Shall not be a maid long, unless
things
⁴⁷
be cut shorter.

EDMUND
    
Save thee
¹
, Curan.

CURAN
    And you, sir. I have been with your father, and given

him notice that the Duke of Cornwall and Regan his duchess

will be here with him this night.

EDMUND
    How comes that?

CURAN
    Nay, I know not. You have heard of the news

abroad
: I mean the whispered
ones
, for they are yet but
ear-
⁷

kissing arguments?

EDMUND
    Not I: pray you, what are they?

CURAN
    Have you heard of no likely wars
toward
¹⁰
’twixt the

dukes of Cornwall and Albany?

EDMUND
    Not a word.

CURAN
    You may do then in time. Fare you well, sir.

EDMUND
    The duke be here tonight? The better — best!

This weaves itself
perforce
¹⁵
into my business.

My father hath set guard to
take
¹⁶
my brother,

And I have one thing, of a
queasy question
¹⁷
,

Which I must act. Briefness and fortune, work!—

Brother, a word: descend, brother, I say!

My father
watches
²⁰
: O sir, fly this place.

Intelligence
²¹
is given where you are hid;

You have now the good advantage of the night.

Have you not spoken gainst the Duke of Cornwall?

He’s coming hither, now, i’th’night,
i’th’haste
²⁴
,

And Regan with him:
have you nothing said
²⁵

Upon his party gainst the Duke of Albany?

Advise yourself
²⁷
.

EDGAR
    I am sure on’t, not a word.

EDMUND
    I hear my father coming, pardon me:

In cunning
³⁰
I must draw my sword upon you:

Draw, seem to defend yourself. Now
quit you
³¹
well.

Yield: come before my father.— Light, ho, here!—

Fly, brother.— Torches, torches!— So, farewell.

Some blood drawn on me would
beget opinion
³⁴

Of my more
fierce
³⁵
endeavour: I have seen drunkards

Do more than this in sport.— Father, father!

Stop, stop! No help?

GLOUCESTER
    Now, Edmund, where’s the villain?

EDMUND
    Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out,

Mumbling of wicked charms,
conjuring
the moon
⁴⁰

To
stand auspicious mistress
⁴¹
—

GLOUCESTER
    But where is he?

EDMUND
    Look, sir, I bleed.

GLOUCESTER
    Where is the villain, Edmund?

EDMUND
    Fled this way, sir. When by no means he could—

GLOUCESTER
    Pursue him, ho! Go after.

By no means what?

EDMUND
Persuade me to the murder of your lordship,

But that I told him the revenging gods

Gainst parricides did all the thunder
bend
⁵⁰
,

Spoke with how manifold and strong a bond

The child was bound to th’father; sir, in
fine
⁵²
,

Seeing how
loathly opposite
⁵³
I stood

To his unnatural purpose, in
fell
⁵⁴
motion

With his
preparèd
sword, he
charges home
⁵⁵

My
unprovided
body,
latched
⁵⁶
mine arm;

And when he saw my best
alarumed
⁵⁷
spirits,

Bold in the
quarrel’s right
, roused to
th’encounter
⁵⁸
,

Or whether
ghasted
⁵⁹
by the noise I made,

Full
⁶⁰
suddenly he fled.

GLOUCESTER
    Let him fly far:

Not in this land shall he remain uncaught,

And
found — dispatch
⁶³
. The noble duke my master,

My worthy
arch and patron
⁶⁴
, comes tonight:

By his authority I will proclaim it,

That he which finds him shall deserve our thanks,

Bringing the murderous coward to the
stake
⁶⁷
:

He that conceals him, death.

EDMUND
    When I dissuaded him from his intent

And found him
pight
to do it, with
curst
⁷⁰
speech

I threatened to
discover
⁷¹
him: he replied,

’Thou
unpossessing
⁷²
bastard, dost thou think,

If I
would stand against
thee, would the
reposal
⁷³

Of any trust, virtue, or worth in thee

Make thy words
faithed
⁷⁵
? No: what should I deny —

As this I would, though thou didst produce

My very
character
⁷⁷
— I’d turn it all

To thy
suggestion
, plot, and damnèd
practice
⁷⁸
,

And thou must
make a dullard of the world
⁷⁹
,

If they
not thought
the
profits
⁸⁰
of my death

Were very
pregnant and potential spirits
⁸¹

To make thee seek it.’

GLOUCESTER
    O,
strange
and
fastened
⁸³
villain!

Would he deny his letter, said he?

Hark, the duke’s trumpets! I know not
where
⁸⁵
he comes.

All
ports
⁸⁶
I’ll bar: the villain shall not scape:

The duke must grant me that. Besides, his
picture
⁸⁷

I will send far and near, that all the kingdom

May have due note of him, and of my land,

Loyal and
natural
boy, I’ll
work the means
⁹⁰

To make thee
capable
⁹¹
.

CORNWALL
    How now, my noble friend? Since I came hither —

Which I can call but now — I have heard strangeness.

REGAN
    If it be true, all vengeance comes too short

Which can pursue th’offender. How dost, my lord?

GLOUCESTER
    O, madam, my old heart is cracked, it’s cracked!

REGAN
    What, did my father’s godson seek your life?

He whom my father named? Your Edgar?

GLOUCESTER
    O, lady, lady, shame would have it hid!

REGAN
    Was he not companion with the riotous knights

That
tended upon
¹⁰¹
my father?

GLOUCESTER
I know not, madam: ’tis too bad, too bad.

EDMUND
    Yes, madam, he was of that
consort
¹⁰³
.

REGAN
    No marvel, then,
though he were ill affected
¹⁰⁴
:

’Tis they have
put him on
¹⁰⁵
the old man’s death,

To have
th’expense
¹⁰⁶
and waste of his revenues.

I have this present evening from my sister

Been well informed of them, and with such cautions

That if they come to sojourn at my house,

I’ll not be there.

CORNWALL
    Nor I, assure thee, Regan.—

Edmund, I hear that you have shown your father

A
child-like
office
¹¹³
.

EDMUND
    It was my duty, sir.

GLOUCESTER
    He did
bewray
his practice
¹¹⁵
and received

This hurt you see striving to apprehend him.

CORNWALL
    Is he pursued?

GLOUCESTER
    Ay, my good lord.

CORNWALL
    If he be taken, he shall never more

Be feared of doing harm:
make your own purpose,
¹²⁰

How in my strength you please.
For
¹²¹
you, Edmund,

Whose virtue and obedience doth this instant

So much commend itself, you shall
be ours
¹²³
:

Natures of such deep trust we shall much need:

You we first
seize on
¹²⁵
.

EDMUND
    I shall serve you, sir, truly, however else.

GLOUCESTER
    For him I thank your grace.

CORNWALL
    You know not why we came to visit you?

REGAN
    Thus
out of season
,
threading
dark-eyed
¹²⁹
night:

Occasions
, noble Gloucester, of some
prize
¹³⁰
,

Wherein we must have use of your advice:

Our father he hath writ, so hath our sister,

Of
differences
¹³³
, which I best thought it fit

To answer
from
¹³⁴
our home: the several messengers

From hence
attend dispatch
¹³⁵
. Our good old friend,

Lay comforts to your bosom, and bestow

Your needful counsel to our businesses,

Which
craves the instant use
¹³⁸

GLOUCESTER
    I serve you, madam:

Your graces are right welcome.