So many of his shadows thou hast met, Doug. I fear thou art another counterfeit; [They fight; the King being in danger, re-enter P. Henry. P. Hen. Hold up thy head, vile Scot, or thou art like Never to hold it up again! the spirits Of valiant Shirley, Stafford, Blunt, are in my arm: [They fight: Douglas flies. Cheerly, my lord: how fares your grace? K. Hen. Stay, and breathe awhile: P. Hen. O God, they did me too much injury Th' insulting hand of Douglas over you, K. Hen. Make up to Clifton: I'll to Sir Nicholas Gawsey. Enter HOTSPUR. Hot. If I mistake not, thou art Harry Monmouth. P. Hen. Why, then I see [Exit. A very valiant rebel of the name. I am the Prince of Wales; and think not, Percy, Two stars keep not their motion in one sphere; Hot. Nor shall it, Harry; for the hour is come Thy name in arms were now as great as mine! [They fight. Nay, you shall find Re-enter DOUGLAS; he fights with FALSTAFF, who falls down as if he were dead, and exit DOUGLAS. HOTSPUR is wounded, and falls. Hot. O Harry, thou hast robb'd me of my youth! I better brook the loss of brittle life Than those proud titles thou hast won of me; They wound my thoughts worse than thy sword my flesh: Must have a stop. O, I could prophesy, But that the earthy and cold hand of death And food for [Dies. P. Hen. For worms, brave Percy: fare thee well, great Ill-weav'd 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: [Sees Falstaff on the ground. What, old acquaintance! could not all this flesh [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, 'twas 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. [Takes Hotspur on his back. Re-enter Prince HENRY and Prince JOHN. P. Hen. Come, brother John; full bravely hast thou flesh'd 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? I prithee, speak; We will not trust our eyes without our ears: Thou art not what thou seem'st. Fal. No, that's certain; I am not a double man: but if I be not Jack Falstaff, then am I a 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 kill'd 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 sounded. [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 [Exit, bearing off the body. should do. SCENE V. Another part of the field. The trumpets sound. Enter King HENRY, Prince HENRY, Prince JOHN, WESTMORELAND, and others, with WORCESTER and VERNON prisoners. K. Hen. Thus ever did rebellion find rebuke. If, like a Christian, thou hadst truly borne Wor. What I have done my safety urg'd 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. How goes the field? [Exeunt Worcester and Vernon, guarded. P. Hen. The noble Scot, Lord Douglas, when he saw The fortune of the day quite turn'd from him, The noble Percy slain, and all his men Upon the foot of fear, fled with the rest; And falling from a hill, he was so bruis'd K. Hen. With all my heart. P. Hen. Then, brother John of Lancaster, to you This honourable bounty shall belong: Go to the Douglas, and deliver him |