Act 1 Scene 3
277 Wor cester And ’tis no little reason bids us speed 278 To save our heads by raising of a head;
279 For, bear ourselves as even as we can, 280 The King will always think him in our debt, 281 And think we think ourselves unsatisfied 282 Till he hath found a time to pay us home.
283 And see already how he doth begin
284 To make us strangers to his looks of love.
285 Hotspur He does, he does. We’ll be revenged on him.
286 Wor cester Cousin, farewell. No further go in this 287 Than I by letter s shall direct your course.
288 When time is ripe, which will be suddenly, 289 I’ll steal to Glyndwr and Lord Mortimer,
290 Where you and Douglas and our powers at once, 291 As I will fashion it, shall happily meet,
292 To bear our fortunes in our own strong arms, 293 Which now we hold at much uncertainty.
Act 2 Scene 4
(Enter Hotspur, reading a letter )
1 Hotspur “But for mine own part, my lord, I could be well 2 contented to be there, in respect of the love I bear your 3 house.”— He could be contented; why is he not then?
4 In respect of the love he bears our house! He shows in 5 this he loves his own barn better than he loves our 6 house. Let me see some more.— “The purpose you 7 undertake is dangerous”— Why, that’s certain: ’tis 8 dangerous to take a cold, to sleep, to drink; but I tell 9 you, my lord fool, out of this nettle danger we pluck 10 this flower safety.— “The purpose you undertake is 11 dangerous, the friends you have named uncertain, the 12 time itself unsorted, and your whole plot too light for
13 the counterpoise of so great an opposition.”— Say you 14 so, say you so? I say unto you again, you are a shallow, 15 cowardly hind, and you lie. What a lack-brain is this!
16 By the Lord, our plot is a good plot as ever was laid, 17 our friends true and constant; a good plot, good friends, 18 and full of expectation; an excellent plot, very good 19 friends. What a frosty-spirited rogue is this! Why, my 20 lord of York commends the plot and the general course 21 of the action. Zounds, an I were now by this rascal, I 22 could brain him with his lady’s fan! Is there not my 23 father, my uncle, and myself? Lord Edmund Mortimer, 24 my lord of York, and Owain Glyndwr? Is there not 25 besides the Douglas? Have I not all their letter s, to 26 meet me in arms by the ninth of the next month? And 27 are they not some of them set forward already? What 28 a pagan rascal is this, an infidel! Ha, you shall see 29 now, in very sincerity of fear and cold heart will he to 30 the King, and lay open all our proceedings! O, I could 31 divide myself and go to buffets for moving such a dish 32 of skim-milk with so honourable an action! Hang him!
33 Let him tell the King we are prepared; I will set forward
34 tonight.
Act 3 Scene 3
195 Pr ince Har r y Russell.
196 Russell My lord?
Pr ince Har r y (giving letter s)
197 Go bear this letter to Lord John of Lancaster,
198 To my brother John; this to my lord of Westmorland.
(Exit Russell)
199 Go, Harvey, to horse, to horse, for thou and I 200 Have thirty miles to ride yet ere dinner time.
(Exit Harvey)
201 Jack, meet me tomorrow in the Temple Hall 202 At two o’clock in the afternoon.
203 There shalt thou know thy charge, and there receive 204 Money and order for their furniture.
205 The land is burning, Percy stands on high, 206 And either we or they must lower lie.
(Exit)
Act 4 Scene 1
10 Douglas Thou art the king of honour.
11 No man so potent breathes upon the ground
12 But I will beard him.
Hotspur Do so, and ’tis well.
(Enter a Messenger with letter s)
13 What letter s hast thou there? I can but thank you.
14 Messenger These letter s come from your father.
15 Hotspur Letter s from him? Why comes he not himself?
16 Messenger He cannot come, my lord, he is grievous sick.
17 Hotspur Zounds, how has he the leisure to be sick 18 In such a jostling time? Who leads his power?
19 Under whose government come they along?
20 Messenger His letter s bears his mind, not I, my lord.
(Hotspur reads the letter )
21 Wor cester I prithee tell me, doth he keep his bed?
22 Messenger He did, my lord, four days ere I set forth;
23 And at the time of my departure thence 24 He was much feared by his physicians.
25 Wor cester I would the state of time had first been whole 26 Ere he by sickness had been visited.
27 His health was never better worth than now.
28 Hotspur Sick now? Droop now? This sickness doth infect 29 The very life-blood of our enterprise.
30 ’Tis catching hither, even to our camp.
31 He writes me here that inward sickness stays him, 32 And that his friends by deputation
33 Could not so soon be drawn; nor did he think it meet 34 To lay so dangerous and dear a trust
35 On any soul removed but on his own.
36 Yet doth he give us bold advertisement
37 That with our small conjunction we should on, 38 To see how fortune is disposed to us;
39 For, as he writes, there is no quailing now, 40 Because the King is certainly possessed 41 Of all our purposes. What say you to it?
42 Wor cester Your father’s sickness is a maim to us.
43 Hotspur A perilous gash, a very limb lopped off.
44 And yet, in faith, it is not. His present want 45 Seems more than we shall find it. Were it good 46 To set the exact wealth of all our states
47 All at one cast, to set so rich a main 48 On the nice hazard of one doubtful hour?
49 It were not good, for therein should we read 50 The very bottom and the sole of hope, 51 The very list, the very utmost bound,
52 Of all our fortunes.
53 Douglas Faith, and so we should, where now remains 54 A sweet reversion— we may boldly spend 55 Upon the hope of what is to come in.
56 A comfort of retirement lives in this.
57 Hotspur A rendezvous, a home to fly unto, 58 If that the devil and mischance look big 59 Upon the maidenhead of our affairs.
60 Wor cester But yet I would your father had been here.
61 The quality and hair of our attempt 62 Brooks no division. It will be thought 63 By some that know not why he is away 64 That wisdom, loyalty, and mere dislike 65 Of our proceedings kept the Earl from hence;
66 And think how such an apprehension 67 May turn the tide of fearful faction,
68 And breed a kind of question in our cause.
69 For, well you know, we of the off’ring side 70 Must keep aloof from strict arbitrement,
71 And stop all sight-holes, every loop from whence 72 The eye of reason may pry in upon us.
73 This absence of your father’s draws a curtain 74 That shows the ignorant a kind of fear
75 Before not dreamt of.
Hotspur You strain too far.
76 I rather of his absence make this use:
77 It lends a lustre, and more great opinion, 78 A larger dare to our great enterprise,
79 Than if the Earl were here; for men must think 80 If we without his help can make a head
81 To push against a kingdom, with his help 82 We shall o’erturn it topsy-turvy down.
83 Yet all goes well, yet all our joints are whole.
84 Douglas As heart can think, there is not such a word 85 Spoke of in Scotland as this term of fear.
Act 4 Scene 4
1 Ar chbishop (giving letter s) Hie, good Sir Michael, bear this sealèd br ief 2 With wingèd haste to the Lord Marshal,
3 This to my cousin Scrope, and all the rest 4 To whom they are directed. If you knew
5 How much they do import, you would make haste.
6 Sir Michael My good lord,
7 I guess their tenor.
Ar chbishop Like enough you do.
8 Tomorrow, good Sir Michael, is a day 9 Wherein the fortune of ten thousand men 10 Must bide the touch; for, sir, at Shrewsbury, 11 As I am truly given to understand,
12 The King with mighty and quick-raisèd power 13 Meets with Lord Harry. And I fear, Sir Michael, 14 What with the sickness of Northumberland, 15 Whose power was in the first proportion,
16 And what with Owain Glyndwr’s absence thence, 17 Who with them was a rated sinew too,
18 And comes not in, overruled by prophecies, 19 I fear the power of Percy is too weak
20 To wage an instant trial with the King.
21 Sir Michael Why, my good lord, you need not fear; there is Douglas
22 And Lord Mortimer.
Ar chbishop No, Mortimer is not there.
23 Sir Michael But there is Mordake, Vernon, Lord Harry Percy;
24 And there is my lord of Worcester, and a head 25 Of gallant warriors, noble gentlemen.
26 Ar chbishop And so there is; but yet the King hath drawn 27 The special head of all the land together—
28 The Prince of Wales, Lord John of Lancaster, 29 The noble Westmorland, and warlike Blunt, 30 And many more corrivals, and dear men 31 Of estimation and command in arms.
32 Sir Michael Doubt not, my lord, they shall be well opposed.
33 Ar chbishop I hope no less, yet needful ’tis to fear;
34 And to prevent the worst, Sir Michael, speed.
35 For if Lord Percy thrive not, ere the King 36 Dismiss his power he means to visit us, 37 For he hath heard of our confederacy,
38 And ’tis but wisdom to make strong against him;
39 Therefore make haste. I must go write again 40 To other friends; and so farewell, Sir Michael.
(Exeunt severally)
Act 5 Scene 2
(Enter a Messenger)
79 Messenger My lord, here are letter s for you.
80 Hotspur I cannot read them now.
(Exit Messenger)
81 O gentlemen, the time of life is short.
82 To spend that shortness basely were too long 83 If life did ride upon a dial’s point,
84 Still ending at the arrival of an hour.
85 An if we live, we live to tread on kings;
86 If die, brave death when princes die with us!
87 Now for our consciences: the arms are fair 88 When the intent of bearing them is just.
(Enter another Messenger)
89 Messenger My lord, prepare; the King comes on apace.
(Exit)
90 Hotspur I thank him that he cuts me from my tale, 91 For I profess not talking, only this:
92 Let each man do his best. And here draw I 93 A sword whose temper I intend to stain 94 With the best blood that I can meet withal 95 In the adventure of this perilous day.
96 Now Esperance! Percy! And set on!
97 Sound all the lofty instruments of war, 98 And by that music let us all embrace,
99 For, heaven to earth, some of us never shall 100 A second time do such a courtesy.
(The trumpets sound. Here they embrace. Exeunt)