 | The history of King Richard The Second |  |
SCENE the Fourth.
Enter Rabble]A Shoomaker, Farrier, Weaver, Tanner, Mercer, Brewer, Butcher, Barber, and infinite others with a Confused Noise.
1.
Silence hea! I Revelation Stitch Command Silence.
All.
Peace hoa!
1.
Am I not Nobly Descended and Honourably Born?
2.
Right, the Field is Honourable, and there was he Born under
a Hedge.
Have I not born Commission with Watt Tyler (witness our
luminary lost in that Service) and was I not president at Jack
Straw's Councel, to kill all the Nobility and Clergy; but the
Fryers mendicant, that in our Reign wou'd soon have starv'd
out o'th' way?
All.
Hum! hum! hem!
1.
What place then do our guifts desere at such a season, where
the temporal King is absent and Usurpers invade?
2.
Why, it behoveth thee to take unto thee a good Conscience,
and make thy self King.
1.
Simon Shuttle, I never lik't thy Politicks, our meanest Brethren
pretend to the spirit of Governing, our Talent is to govern
the Governour; therefore as Bullingbrook shall approve
himself to our liking, we will fix him upon the last of the Government,
or cast him out amongst the shreds and shavings of
the Common-wealth.
4.
But pray Neighbour, what is this same Common-wealth?
3.
You may see it at Smithfield all the Fair-time, 'tis the Butt End
of the Nation.
5.
Peace hea! hear Master Revelation expound it.
1.
Why the Common-wealth is a-Kin to your-a-republick, like
Man and Wife, the very same thing, only the Common-wealth is
the Common-wealth and the Republick is the Republick.
2.
What an excellent Spirit of knowledge is here?
3.
Wee'l have no more Bills nor Bonds, but all shall be reduc't
to the Score and Tally.
4.
No Physick, but what shall be administer'd in a Horn.
5.
We'l have Priviledges taken off, and all sorts compell'd to pay
their Debts.
7.
I except against that, I would rather break, than have gentlemen
out of my debt; it gives us priviledg of being Sawcy: how
are we fain to cringe 'till we have got them into our Books? and then I
warrant we can cock up with the best of 'em. I hate mortally to
be paid off, it makes a man such a sneaking Rascal.
1.
We will have strict and wholsom Laws—
6.
Laws, Strict Laws, so will there be no mischief done, and our
Profession starve. I'll ha' no Laws.
Others,
no Laws, no Laws, no Laws.
Others,
Laws, Laws, Laws.
They Scuffle.
1.
Hark, Bullingbrook approaches, put your selves in posture,
Flourish here.]
Enter Bullingbrook with his Army.
North.
Behold my Lord an Object strange and suddain,
The Rabble up in Arms to mock your pow'rs.
As once the Indian Apes are said to have done
To Alexander's Army.
Pierc.
Death my Lord.
Permit me play for once the Scavinger,
And sweep this Dirt out of your way.
Bull.
Gently my valiant Piercy.
Rage is the proper weapon of these Bruits,
With which 'tis odds, they foil us, Rainston go to'em,
Bespeak 'em fair, and know what caus'd this Tumult.
1.
Oh an envoy! know of him his Quality.
4.
'Tis Sir John Rainston, I have wrought for him.
1.
Down on thy knee; now (because we will observe Decorums
of State) rise up Sir John Drench and Treat with him.
Bull.
Hold Rainston, we will treat with 'em in person,
For in their looks I read a sober judgment,
All carefull to preserve the publick weal,
Chiefly this awful man, to whose grave Censure
We do refer the justice of our Arms.
2.
Goodly! what a gracious person he is.
Bull.
I weep for joy, to see so brave a spirit,
So jealous of your Liberty and Rights.
Trust me my Countrymen, my Friends, my Brothers,
'Tis worthy of the fame the world affords you,
And that curst Limb that stirs against your Priviledges,
Why, let it Rot, tho' it were this right hand.
All.
A Bullingbrook! a Bullingbrook! &c.
Bull.
Mistake not my dear Countrymen our purpose,
You think perhaps cause we are now arriv'd,
With formal Arms, in absence of the King,
That we take this occasion to Usurp,
Alas we harbour no such foul design.
1.
How's that? not usurp? hear ye that Neighbours? he refuses
to Usurp.
Others,
Fall on then, he is not for our turn, down with him.
Sir, we shall give you to understand that we want a Usurper,
and if you refuse to usurp you are a Traytor, and so we put our
selves in Battail array.
Bull.
Yet hear me—what you mean by Usurpation,
I may mistake, and beg to be informd.
If it be only to ascend the Throne,
To see that justice has a liberal course,
In needful Wars to lead you forth to Conquest,
And then dismiss you laden home with Spoils;
If you mean this, I am at your disposal,
And for your profit am content to take
The burden of the State upon my hands.
All,
A Bullingbrook, a Bullingbrook, &c.
1.
One word of caution Friend, be not Chicken-hearted, but pluck
up a Spirit for the work before thee; it was revealed to me that now
there should arise a Son of Thunder, a second Tyler—and I am
resolv'd the vision shall not Lie; therefore I say again pluck up a
Spirit; otherwise I shall discharge my Conscience and usurp my
Self.
Bull.
Friends think me not made of such easie phlegm,
That I can timely pocket wrongs; if so
Why come I thus in Arms to seek my Right?
No sirs, to give you proof that Bullingbrook
Can do bold justice, here stands one Example:
This bold presumer that dares call in question,
The courage of the Man you choose for King,
Shall die for his Offence, Guards hang him up.
1.
Why Neighbours will ye thus give up your Light? who shall
reveal to ye, to save you from the Poyson of the Whore and the
Horns of the Beast.
2.
He had no Vision to foretel this, therefore deserves Hanging
for being a false Prophet.
Bull.
Thus as a Ruler, justice bids me doom,
But for my private part I weep to think
That Blood shou'd be the Prologue to my Reign.
4.
Good Prince he weeps for him! Neighbour Revelation depart
in peace. For thy honour it will be recorded that Bullingbrook
was Crown'd and thou hang'd all on a Day.
1.
What a spirit of delusion has seiz'd ye? why thus will this
rav'nous Storck devour ye all! do, do, deliver me to the Gibbet, and
you in Slavery, seize your Houses over your heads, hang your Sons
and ravish your Daughters.
All,
Say ye so? they must excuse us for that: fall on Neighbors.
A Rescue, a Rescue, &c.
Bull.
Hold Gentlemen, if I have done ye wrong,
The fault is mine and let me suffer for't;
But be not thus injurious to your selves,
To fling your naked Breasts on our Swords points.
Alas it will not be within my Pow'r,
To save ye, when my Troops are once enrag'd.
Therefore give up this vile Incendiary,
Who as you see, to save his miscreant Life,
Seeks to expose all yours—trust me I weep
To think that I must loose a Member—but
Let justice have its course.
All,
Ay, ay, Let justice have it's course, hang, hang him up.
A Bullingbrook, a Bullingbrook, a Bullingbrook, &c,
[Exeunt.
| The history of King Richard The Second | |