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P. Hen. For worms, brave Percy: fare thee well, great heart !—

Ill-weaved ambition, how much art thou shrunk!
When that this body did contain a spirit,
A kingdom for it was too small a bound;
But now, two paces of the vilest earth

Is room enough :—this earth, that bears thee dead,
Bears not alive so stout a gentleman.

If thou wert sensible of courtesy,

I should not make so dear a show of zeal :—
But let my favours hide thy mangled face;
And, even in thy behalf, I'll thank myself
For doing these fair rites of tenderness.

Adieu, and take thy praise with thee to heaven!
Thy ignomy sleep with thee in the grave,

But not remembered in thy epitaph!—

[He spieth FALSTAFF on the ground. What, old acquaintance! could not all this flesh Keep in a little life? Poor Jack, farewell!

I could have better spared a better man.
O, I should have a heavy miss of thee,
If I were much in love with vanity.
Death hath not struck so fat a deer to-day,
Though many dearer, in this bloody fray.
Embowelled will I see thee by-and-by ;
Till then, in blood by noble Percy lie.

[Exit.

Fal. [Rising.] Embowelled if thou embowel me to-day, I'll give you leave to powder me, and eat me too, to-morrow. 'Sblood, 't was time to counterfeit, or that hot termagant Scot had paid me scot and lot too. Counterfeit ? I lie; I am no counterfeit to die, is to be a counterfeit; for he is but the counterfeit of a man, who hath not the life of a man; but to counterfeit dying, when a man thereby liveth, is to be no counterfeit, but the true and perfect image of life indeed. The better part of valour is discretion; in the which better part I have saved my life. Zounds, I am afraid of this gunpowder Percy, though he be dead. How, if he should counterfeit too, and rise by my faith, I am afraid he would prove the better counterfeit. Therefore I'll make him sure; yea, and I'll swear I killed him. Why may not he rise, as well as I? Nothing confutes me but eyes, and nobody sees me: therefore, sirrah, [stabbing him] with a new wound in your thigh come you along with me. [He takes HOTSPUR on his back.

Re-enter Prince HENRY and Prince JOHN.

P. Hen. Come, brother John; full bravely hast thou fleshed

Thy maiden sword.

P. John.

But, soft! whom have we here?

Did you not tell me this fat man was dead?

P. Hen. I did; I saw him dead, breathless and bleeding

On the ground.—

Art thou alive? or is it fantasy

That plays upon our eyesight? pr'ythee, speak;
We will not trust our eyes without our ears.
Thou art not what thou seem'st.

man;

Fal. No, that's certain; I am not a double but if I be not Jack Falstaff, then am I Jack. There is Percy; [throwing the body down] if your father will do me any honour, so; if not, let him kill the next Percy himself. I look to be either earl or duke, I can assure you.

P. Hen. Why, Percy I killed myself, and saw thee dead.

Fal. Didst thou ?-Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!—I grant you I was down, and out of breath, and so was he; but we rose both at an instant, and fought a long hour by Shrewsbury clock. If I may be believed, so; if not, let them that should reward valour bear the sin upon their own heads. I'll take it upon my death, I gave him this wound in the thigh: if the man were

alive, and would deny it, zounds, I would make him eat a piece of my sword.

P. John. This is the strangest tale that e'er I

heard.

P. Hen. This is the strangest fellow, brother
John.-

Come, bring your luggage nobly on your back:
For my part, if a lie may do thee grace,
I'll gild it with the happiest terms I have.

[A retreat is sounded.

The trumpet sounds retreat; the day is ours.
Come, brother, let 's to th' highest of the field,
To see what friends are living, who are dead.

[Exeunt Prince HENRY and Prince JOHN. Fal. I'll follow, as they say, for reward. He that rewards me, God reward him! If I do grow

great, I'll grow less; for I'll purge, and leave

sack, and live cleanly as a nobleman should do.

[Exit, bearing off the body.

SCENE V.-Another Part of the Field.

The trumpets sound. Enter King HENRY, Prince HENRY, Prince JOHN, WESTMORELAND, and

others, with

prisoners.

WORCESTER, and

VERNON,

K. Hen. Thus ever did rebellion find rebuke.-
Ill-spirited Worcester, did we not send grace,
Pardon, and terms of love to all of you ?
And wouldst thou turn our offers contrary?
Misuse the tenor of thy kinsman's trust?
Three knights upon our party slain to-day,
A noble earl, and many a creature else,
Had been alive this hour,

If, like a Christian, thou hadst truly borne
Betwixt our armies true intelligence,

Wor. What I have done, my safety urged me

to,

And I embrace this fortune patiently,

Since not to be avoided it falls on me.

K. Hen. Bear Worcester to the death, and Vernon too;

Other offenders we will pause upon.—

[Exeunt WORCESTER and VERNON guarded.

How goes the field?

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