For raging wind blows up incessant showers, 145 'Gainst thee, fell Clifford, and thee, false Frenchwoman. North. Beshrew me, but his passions move me so 150 That hardly can I check my eyes from tears. York. That face of his the hungry cannibals Would not have touch'd, would not have stain'd with blood; O, ten times more than tigers of Hyrcania. 155 See, ruthless queen, a hapless father's tears: This cloth thou dipp'dst in blood of my sweet boy, Keep thou the napkin, and go boast of this; 160 150, 151. Beshrew... so That . . . tears] 135, 136. Beshrew move me so, As... mine eies. teares Q. 152-155. That face... Would Hyrcania] 137-140. That face not Could not passions Arcadia Q. 156-166. See, ruthless... And I... do wash . . . of this tell'st... Earlier than these is Sylvester's Du Bartas: "African Panthers, Hyrcan Tigres fierce, Cleonian Lions, and Pannonian Bears" (The Sixth Day of the First Week, p. 123, 1591). And earlier in Timothie Kendall, Flowers of Epigrammes, 1577: “A Tiger of the Hyrcan stocke" (rept. p. 20). Eden pointed out the confusion between Hyrcania and Herecynia. The Caspian Sea was known as Hyrcanum. See Richard Eden's Of the North-east Frostie Seas, 1555 (Hakluyt Soc. 1852). Chiefly from Paulus Jovius. The Quarto reading is an odd misprint. 156. ruthless queen] Marlowe has "our ruthless governor (Tamburlaine, Part I. v. i., ed. Dyce, 32, a). 157. dipp'dst] Compare "meantest," 2 Henry VI. . ii. 222, and "suckedst," 1 Henry VI. v. iv. 28. See Introduction on this inflection, due to prevalence of "thou" and "thee". 160. tell'st the heavy story right] Compare Machin's Dumb Knight :"When the sad nurse, to still the wrangling babe, Shall sing the careful story of my death, Give me a sigh " (Hazlitt's Dodsley, x. 155). See Upon my soul, the hearers will shed tears; Yea, even my foes will shed fast-falling tears, There, take the crown, and with the crown my curse, 165 As now I reap at thy too cruel hand! I should not for my life but weep with him, Q. Mar. What, weeping-ripe, my Lord Northumberland? Clif. Here's for my oath; here's for my father's death. 170 175 [Stabbing him. Q. Mar. And here's to right our gentle-hearted king. [Stabbing him. York. Open thy gate of mercy, gracious God! right... Yea And loe There, take [Dies. too cruel hand !] 141-151. See ruthlesse of that. tell. well.. I (Ay) Here, take two cruell hands Q. 167, 168. Hard-hearted... heads] 152, 153. Hard-harted. . . heads Q. 169-171. Had . . . soul] 154-156. Had he bin. of all... I could not chuse but weep 172-180. What, weeping-ripe .. thy melting And here's gentle-hearted king flies gate of town of York] 157-165. What weeping ripe. thears .. And thears. ... flies your melting gentle hearted kind. gates of foorth to meet with thee towne of York. Exeunt Omnes Q. [Stabbing .. Stabbing . . . Dies] omitted Q, Ff. Richard III. 1. ii. 155-166 on these 171. inly] inward. Occurs again Two Gentlemen of Verona, II. vii. 18. Elsewhere an adverb. But the distinction is not a sound one. 171. sorrow gripes his soul] Recalls a line in The First Part of Contention, Q. Mar. Off with his head, and set it on York gates: So York may overlook the town of York. not to speake." Earliest in Contention, and due to Shakespeare. Greene has the phrase in Selimus. 179, 180. Off with his head... York]" After this victory by ye Quene and her parte obteyned, she caused the erle of Salisbury, with all the other prisoners, to bee sent to Pomfret and 180 [Flourish. Exeunt. there to be behedded, and sent all their heddes, and the dukes head of Yorke, to be set upon poles, ouer the gate of the citie of Yorke in despite of them and their lignage " (Hall, p. 251, ed. 1809). See 11. i. 65. And see extract at II. v. 125 for more about York's head. ACT II SCENE I-A Plain near Mortimer's Cross in A March. Enter EDWARD, RICHARD, and their power. Edw. I wonder how our princely father 'scaped, Or whether he be 'scaped away or no From Clifford's and Northumberland's pursuit. Rich. I cannot joy until I be resolv'd Where our right valiant father is become. A March] Ff; omitted Q. with drum and Souldiers Q. Enter...] Ff; Enter Edward and Richard, 8. How ... sad?] 1, 2. Edw. After this dangerous fight and haplesse warre How doth my noble brother Richard fare? Q. 9, 10. Rich. I cannot. . . is become] 3, 4. Rich. I cannot ... is become Q. 1. I wonder. . .] When Shakespeare wrote a new opening for the older one, in this scene, as he frequently does in these two plays, he perhaps forgot the almost identical first line of the first Act-which was in Q. 4-6. Had he Had he ... Or had he] The repetition of the initial words in poetical lines was carried to great excess at this time and earlier. In this play see Act ii., Scene v., where (as here) it is part of the finished play, not the Quarto version. For examples see Hawes' Pastime of Pleasure (1509), p. 102, reprint, where fourteen lines have same beginnings. Gascoigne's Steel Glas is loaded with the trick. Spenser abounds in iterations and repetitions, but in a more measured manner, and with due regard to eloquence. I saw him in the battle range about, And watch'd him how he singled Clifford forth. Or as a bear, encompass'd round with dogs, 11-14. I saw him . . . As doth .. see him beare himselfe, As doth enemies] omitted Q. 19, 20. son] 7, 8. So fled. our valiant. in the aire Q. 21-25. See how suns? 9-11. Edw. Dazzle suns? Q. ... 12. singled...for th] Not in Q. note at "singled," below, II. iv. i. 15 20 in a... neat] 5, 6. How often did I midst ... neat Q. 15-18. Or as a So fled. my war-like... prize.. pride.. . sonne. Three sonnes appeare glorious sun; How . . . love. Edw. how.. glorious sun, Dasell . . . Loe See 20. prize] "pride" of Quartos is preferable. But compare "prize" (privilege) above, 1. iv. 59. ... 21-24. the morning prancing to his love] A variously put metaphor. See Psalm xix. 4, 5, and Faerie Queene, I. v. 2, where the "golden orientall gate" occurs: "And Phoebus, fresh as brydegroome to his mate, Came dauncing forth." And Peele, David and Bethsabe (473, a), where Dyce gives the reference to Spenser, as Jortin does on Faerie Queene to the Psalm, a reference given much earlier by Sylvester (1621 ed. p. 85) in a marginal note to the lines in Fourth Day of the First Week of Du Bartas (1591):— "Thou seem'st (O Titan) like a Bride-groome brave, Who from his chamber early issuing out In rich array," etc. |