The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (152 page)

Archbishop, Hastings, and others; from the other side, Prince

John of Lancaster, and Westmoreland; Officers, and others with

them.]

LANCASTER.

You are well encounter'd here, my cousin Mowbray:

Good day to you, gentle lord Archbishop;

And so to you, Lord Hastings, and to all.

My Lord of York, it better show'd with you

When that your flock, assembled by the bell,

Encircled you to hear with reverence

Your exposition on the holy text

Than now to see you here an iron man,

Cheering a rout of rebels with your drum,

Turning the word to sword and life to death.

That man that sits within a monarch's heart,

And ripens in the sunshine of his favour,

Would he abuse the countenance of the king,

Alack, what mischiefs might he set abroach

In shadow of such greatness! With you, lord bishop,

It is even so. Who hath not heard it spoken

How deep you were within the books of God?

To us the speaker in his parliament;

To us the imagined voice of God himself;

The very opener and intelligencer

Between the grace, the sanctities of heaven

And our dull workings. O, who shall believe

But you misuse the reverence of your place,

Employ the countenance and grace of heaven,

As a false favourite doth his prince's name,

In deeds dishonourable? You have ta'en up,

Under the counterfeited zeal of God,

The subjects of his substitute, my father,

And both against the peace of heaven and him

Have here up-swarm'd them.

Good to see you here, my cousin Mowbray;

good day to you, noble Lord Archbishop;

and the same to you, Lord Hastings, and to all of you.

My Lord, you looked better when

your flock, called by the church bell,

gathered round you to respectfully listen

to your explanations of the Bible

than to see you here now in armour,

cheering on a rabble of rebels with your drum,

exchanging the word for the sword, and life for death.

If the man who is close to the heart of the monarch,

and who prospers due to his position,

if he abuses the King’s support,

alas, what troubles he can start

in the shadow of greatness! That is how it is with you,

Lord Bishop. Who hasn't heard tell of

how well you were in God's good graces,

to us you were his representative on earth,

we imagined you spoke with the voice of God himself,

the interpreter and messenger

between the grace of heaven

and our dull thoughts. Oh, who can think anything

but that you are abusing the holiness of your position,

using the grace and favour of heaven

as a false favourite uses the name of his prince,

to do dishonourable deeds? You have raised a force,

under the false pretence of faith in God,

of the subjects of God's representative on earth, my father,

and have set them on to rebel against

both the peace of heaven and against him.

ARCHBISHOP.

Good my Lord of Lancaster,

I am not here against your father's peace;

But, as I told my Lord of Westmoreland,

The time misorder'd doth, in common sense,

Crowd us and crush us to this monstrous form

To hold our safety up. I sent your grace

The parcels and particulars of our grief,

The which hath been with scorn shoved from the court,

Whereon this Hydra son of war is born;

Whose dangerous eyes may well be charm'd asleep

With grant of our most just and right desires,

And true obedience, of this madness cured,

Stoop tamely to the foot of majesty.

My good Lord of Lancaster,

I am not here to disturb your father's peace;

but, as I told my Lord of Westmorland,

these chaotic times make us have to,

as everyone can see, assume this terrible course of action

in order to preserve ourselves. I sent your Grace

a list of all our particular grievances,

and it has been rejected with scorn by the court,

and that is what has given birth to this terrible war,

which can be ended at once

by granting our most justified requests,

and when this is all over we will obediently

bow down to the foot of the King.

MOWBRAY.

If not, we ready are to try our fortunes

To the last man.

If they are not, we are ready to take our chances,

down to the last man.

HASTINGS.

And though we here fall down,

We have supplies to second our attempt:

If they miscarry, theirs shall second them;

And so success of mischief shall be born

And heir from heir shall hold this quarrel up

Whiles England shall have generation.

And if we should fail here,

we have reinforcements who will try again:

if they fail, their descendants will try yet again;

and so mischief will grow from mischief,

and heir after heir will keep this quarrel going

as long as England has children.

LANCASTER.

You are too shallow, Hastings, much to shallow,

To sound the bottom of the after-times.

You are too shallow, Hastings, much too shallow,

to know what will happen in the future.

WESTMORELAND.

Pleaseth your grace to answer them directly

How far forth you do like their articles.

If you please, your Grace, answer them directly

concerning their grievances.

LANCASTER.

I like them all, and do allow them well,

And swear here, by the honour of my blood,

My father's purposes have been mistook,

And some about him have too lavishly

Wrested his meaning and authority.

My lord, these griefs shall be with speed redress'd;

Upon my soul, they shall. If this may please you,

Discharge your powers unto their several counties,

As we will ours; and here between the armies

Let 's drink together friendly and embrace,

That all their eyes may bear those tokens home

Of our restored love and amity.

I agree to them all, and say they are all right,

and I swear here, on the honour of my blood,

that my father's intentions have been misunderstood,

and some of his followers have been interpreting

his meaning and his power too widely.

My Lord, these grievances shall be swiftly addressed;

I swear on my soul, they shall. If this pleases you,

disperse your forces back to their different counties,

and we will do the same; and here between our armies

let's toast each other and embrace,

so that all of them can bear witness, and report it

in their homes, to our renewed love and friendship.

ARCHBISHOP.

I take your princely word for these redresses.

I take your word as a Prince that you will do this.

LANCASTER.

I give it you, and will maintain my word:

And thereupon I drink unto your grace.

I give you my word, and I will keep it:

and with it I drink to your Grace.

HASTINGS.

Go, captain, and deliver to the army

This news of peace:  let them have pay, and part:

I know it will please them. Hie thee, captain.

Go, captain, and tell the army

this news of peace: let them be paid, and leave:

I know they will be pleased to. Off you go, captain.

[Exit Officer.]

ARCHBISHOP.

To you, my noble Lord of Westmoreland.

To you, my noble Lord of Westmorland.

WESTMORELAND.

I pledge your grace; and, if you knew what pains

I have bestow'd to breed this present peace,

You would drink freely:  but my love to ye

Shall show itself more openly hereafter.

I drink to your grace; and, if you knew what trouble

I have taken to create this peace,

you would drink freely: but my love for you

will become more obvious later.

ARCHBISHOP.

I do not doubt you.

I don't doubt you.

WESTMORELAND.

I am glad of it.

Health to my lord and gentle cousin, Mowbray.

I am glad to hear it.

Good health to my Lord and gentle cousin, Mowbray.

MOWBRAY.

You wish me health in very happy season,

For I am, on the sudden, something ill.

I'm very glad that you are wishing me health,

for I suddenly feel rather uneasy.

ARCHBISHOP.

Against ill chances men are ever merry;

But heaviness foreruns the good event.

Men are always happy went bad luck is coming;

foreboding is a sign of something good.

WESTMORELAND.

Therefore be merry, coz; since sudden sorrow

Serves to say thus, "some good thing comes tomorrow."

So be happy, cousin; as sudden sorrow

is saying to you, “something good is coming tomorrow."

ARCHBISHOP.

Believe me, I am passing light in spirit.

Believe me, I am feeling very merry.

MOWBRAY.

So much the worse, if your own rule be true.

But that's bad, if your own rule is true.

[Shouts within.]

LANCASTER.

The word of peace is render'd:  hark, how they shout!

They have been told about the peace: listen to how they shout!

MOWBRAY.

This had been cheerful after victory.

This would've sounded good after a victory.

ARCHBISHOP.

A peace is of the nature of a conquest;

For then both parties nobly are subdued,

And neither party loser.

A peace is like a victory;

both parties have nobly withdrawn,

and neither party has lost.

LANCASTER.

Go, my lord.

And let our army be discharged too.

[Exit Westmoreland.]

And, good my lord, so please you, let our trains

March by us, that we may peruse the men

We should have coped withal.

Go ahead, my lord.

Discharge our army too.

And, my good lord, if it pleases you, let our followers

march past us, so that we can see the men

that we would have had to fight with.

ARCHBISHOP.

Go, good Lord Hastings,

And, ere they be dismiss'd, let them march by.

Go, good Lord Hastings,