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To morrow morning to the council-board

He be convented.4 He's a rank weed, sir Thomas,
And we must root him out. From your affairs
I hinder you too long; good night, sir Thomas.

[Exeunt GARDINER, and Page.
Lov. Many good nights, my lord; I rest your servant.
As LOVEL is going out, enter the King, and the Duke of SUFFOLK.
K.Hen. Charles, I will play no more to-night;
My mind's not on't, you are too hard for me.
Suf. I did never win of you before.

K. Hen. But little, Charles;

Nor shall not, when my fancy's on my play.-
Now, Lovell, from the queen what is the news?
Lov. I could not personally deliver to her
What you commanded me, but by her woman
I sent your message; who return'd her thanks
In the greatest humbleness, and desir'd your highness
Most heartily to pray for her.

K. Hen. What say'st thou ? ha!

To pray for her! what, is she crying out?

Lov. So said her woman; and that her sufferance made

Almost each pang a death.

K. Hen. Alas, good lady!

Suf. God safely quit her of her burden, and

With gentle travail, to the gladding of

Your highness with an heir!

K. Hen. 'Tis midnight, Charles,

Pr'ythee, to bed; and in thy prayers remember
The estate of my poor queen. Leave me alone;
For I must think of that, which company

Will not be friendly to.

Suf. I wish your highness

A quiet night, and my good mistress will

Remember in my prayers.

K. Hen. Charles, good night.

[Exit SUFFOLK.

Enter Sir ANTHONY DENNY.

Well, sir, what follows?

Den. Sir, I have brought my lord the archbishop, As you commanded me.

K. Hen. Ha! Canterbury?

Den. Ay, my good lord.

K. Hen. 'Tis true: Where is he, Denny?

Den. He attends your highness' pleasure.

[3] Convented is summoned, convened.

STEEV,

K. Hen. Bring him to us.

[Exit DENNY.

[Aside.

Lov. This is about that which the bishop spake ;

I am happily come hither.

Re-enter DENNY, with CRANMER.

K.Hen. Avoid the gallery. [LOVELL seems to stay. Ha-I have said.-Be gone.

What!

[Exeunt LOVELL and DENNY. Cran. I am fearful-Wherefore frowns he thus ? 'Tis his aspect of terror. All's not well.

K.Hen. How now, my lord? You do desire to know Wherefore I sent for you.

Cran. It is my duty,

To attend your highness' pleasure.

K. Hen. 'Pray you, arise,

My good and gracious lord of Canterbury.

Come, you and I must walk a turn together;

I have news to tell you: Come, come, give me your hand.
Ah, my good lord, I grieve at what I speak,
And am right sorry to repeat what follows:
I have, and most unwillingly, of late
Heard many grievous, I do say, my lord,

Grievous complaints of you; which, being consider'd,
Have mov'd us and our council, that you shall
This morning come before us; where, I know,
You cannot with such freedom purge yourself,
But that, till further trial, in those charges
Which will require your answer, you must take
Your patience to you, and be well contented

To make your house our Tower: You a brother of us,
It fits we thus proceed, or else no witness

Would come against you.

Cran. I humbly thank your highness;

And am right glad to catch this good occasion

Most throughly to be winnow'd, where my chaff

And corn shall fly asunder: for, I know,

There's none stands under more calumnious tongues, Than I myself, poor man.

K.Hen. Stand up, good Canterbury;

Thy truth, and thy integrity, is rooted

In us, thy friend: Give me thy hand, stand up;
Pr'ythee, let's walk. Now, by my holy-dame,
What manner of man are you? My lord, I look'd

[5] You being one of the council, it is necessary to imprison you, that the witnesses against you may not be deterred.

JOHNS.

You would have given me your petition, that

I should have ta'en some pains to bring together
Yourself and your accusers; and to have heard you
Without indurance,6 further.

Cran. Most dread liege,

The good I stand on7 is my truth, and honesty ;
If they shall fail, I, with mine enemies,

Will triumph o'er my person; which I weigh not,
Being of those virtues vacant. I fear nothing

What can be said against me.

K.Hen. Know you not how

Your state stands i'the world, with the whole world?
Your enemies

Are many, and not small; their practices

Must bear the same proportion and not ever
The justice and the truth o'the question carries
The due o'the verdict with it: At what ease
Might corrupt minds procure knaves as corrupt
To swear against you? such things have been done.
You are potently oppos'd; and with a malice
Of as great size. Ween you of better luck, 8
I mean, in perjur'd witness, than your master,
Whose minister you are, whiles here he liv'd
Upon this naughty earth? Go to, go to ;
You take a precipice for no leap of danger,
And woo your own destruction.

Cran. God, and your majesty,

Protect mine innocence, or I fall into
The trap is laid for me!

K. Hen. Be of good cheer;

They shall no more prevail, than we give way to.
Keep comfort to you; and this morning see

You do appear before them; if they shall chance,
In charging you with matters, to commit you,
The best persuasions to the contrary

Fail not to use, and with what vehemency
The occasion shall instruct you if entreaties
Will render you no remedy, this ring

Deliver them, and your appeal to us

There make before them.-Look, the good man weeps!

[6] Indurance, that is confinement. JOHNS.

[7] Though good may be taken for advantage or superiority, or any thing which may help or support, yet it would, I think, be more natural to say: The ground I stand on

[8] To ween is to think, to imagine. common to all our ancient writers.

JOHNS.
Though now obsolete, the word was
STEEV.

He's honest, on mine honour. God's blest mother!

I swear, he is true-hearted; and a soul

None better in my kingdom.-Get you gone,

And do as I have bid you.

He has strangled

His language in his tears.

[Exit CRANMER.

Enter an old Lady.

Gent. [Within.] Come back; What mean you? Lady. I'll not come back; the tidings that I bring Will make my boldness manners.-Now, good angels Fly o'er thy royal head, and shade thy person Under their blessed wings!

K. Hen. Now, by thy looks

I guess thy message. Is the queen deliver'd ?
Say, ay; and of a boy.

Lady. Ay, ay, my liege;

And of a lovely boy: The God of heaven
Both now and ever bless her !—'tis a girl,
Promises boys hereafter. Sir, your queen
Desires your visitation, and to be

Acquainted with this stranger; 'tis as like you,
As cherry is to cherry.

K.Hen. Lovell,

Lov. Sir.

Enter LovELL.

K.Hen. Give her an hundred marks. I'll to the queen.

[Exit King.

Lady. An hundred marks! By this light, I'll have more.

An ordinary groom is for such payment.
I will have more, or scold it out of him.
Said I for this, the girl is like to him?
I will have more, or else unsay't; and now
While it is hot, I'll put it to the issue.

SCENE II.

[Exeunt.

Lobby before the Council-chamber. Enter CRANMER; Servants, Door-keeper, c. attending.

Cran. I hope, I am not too late; and yet the gentleman, That was sent to me from the council, pray'd me

To make great haste. All fast? what means this?-Hoa! Who waits there ?-Sure, you know me?

D. Keep. Yes, my lord ;

But yet I cannot help you.

Cran. Why?

D. Keep. Your grace must wait, till you be call'd for. Enter Doctor BUTTS.

Cran. So.

Butts. This is a piece of malice. I am glad,

I came this way so happily: The king
Shall understand it presently.

Cran. [Aside.] 'Tis Butts,

The king's physician; As he past along,
How earnestly he cast his eyes upon me!

[Exit BUTTS.

Pray heaven, he sound not my disgrace! For certain, This is of purpose lay'd, by some that hate me,

(God turn their hearts' I never sought their malice,) To quench mine honour: they would shame to make me Wait else at door; a fellow counsellor,

Among boys, grooms, and lackeys. But their pleasures Must be fulfill'd, and I attend with patience.

Enter, at a window above, the King and BUTTS.9 Butts. I'll show your grace the strangest sight,K.Hen. What's that, Butts ?

Butts. I think, your highness saw this many a day. K.Hen. Body o'me, where is it?

Butts. There, my lord:

The high promotion of his grace of Canterbury;
Who holds his state at door, 'mongst pursuivants,
Pages, and footboys.

K.Hen. Ha! 'Tis he, indeed:

Is this the honour they do one another?

'Tis well, there's one above them yet. I had thought, They had parted so much honesty among them,

(At least, good manners,) as not thus to suffer

A man of his place, and so near our favour,

To dance attendance on their lordships' pleasures,
And at the door too, like a post with packets.
By holy Mary, Butts, there's knavery :

Let them alone, and draw the curtain close ;
We shall hear more anon.-

THE COUNCIL-CHAMBER.

[Exeunt

Enter the Lord Chancellor, the Duke of SUFFOLK, Earl of SURREY, Lord Chamberlain, GARDINER, and CROMWELL. The

[9] The suspicious vigilance of our ancestors contrived windows which overlooked the insides of chapels, halls, kicchens, passages, &c. Some of these convenient pe-p-holes may stil: be found in colleges, and such ancient houses as have not suffered from the reformations of modern architecture. Without a previous knowledge of this custom, Shakspeare's scenery, in the present instance, would be obscure. STEEV.

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