Strike!FIRST MURDERER.No,we'll reason with him.CLARENCE.Where art thou,Keeper?Give me a cup of wine.SECOND MURDERER.You shall have wine enough,my lord,anon.CLARENCE.In God's name,what art thou?FIRST MURDERER.A man,as you are.CLARENCE.But not as I am,royal.SECOND MURDERER.Nor you as we are,loyal.CLARENCE.Thy voice is thunder,but thy looks are humble.FIRST MURDERER.My voice is now the King's,my looks mine own.CLARENCE.How darkly and how deadly dost thou speak!Your eyes do menace me.Why look you pale?Who sent you hither?Wherefore do you come?SECOND MURDERER.To,to,to-CLARENCE.To murder me?BOTH MURDERERS.Ay,ay.CLARENCE.You scarcely have the hearts to tell me so,And therefore cannot have the hearts to do it.Wherein,my friends,have I offended you?FIRST MURDERER.Offended us you have not,but the King.CLARENCE.I shall be reconcil'd to him again.SECOND MURDERER.Never,my lord;therefore prepare to die.CLARENCE.Are you drawn forth among a world of men To slay the innocent?What is my offence?Where is the evidence that doth accuse me?What lawful quest have given their verdict up Unto the frowning judge,or who pronounc'd The bitter sentence of poor Clarence'death?Before I be convict by course of law,To threaten me with death is most unlawful.I charge you,as you hope to have redemption By Christ's dear blood shed for our grievous sins,That you depart and lay no hands on me.The deed you undertake is damnable.FIRST MURDERER.What we will do,we do upon command.SECOND MURDERER.And he that hath commanded is our King.CLARENCE.Erroneous vassals!the great King of kings Hath in the tables of his law commanded That thou shalt do no murder.Will you then Spurn at his edict and fulfil a man's?Take heed;for he holds vengeance in his hand To hurl upon their heads that break his law.
SECOND MURDERER.And that same vengeance doth he hurl on thee For false forswearing,and for murder too;Thou didst receive the sacrament to fight In quarrel of the house of Lancaster.FIRST MURDERER.And like a traitor to the name of God Didst break that vow;and with thy treacherous blade Unripp'dst the bowels of thy sov'reign's son.SECOND MURDERER.Whom thou wast sworn to cherish and defend.FIRST MURDERER.How canst thou urge God's dreadful law to us,When thou hast broke it in such dear degree?CLARENCE.Alas!for whose sake did I that ill deed?
For Edward,for my brother,for his sake.He sends you not to murder me for this,For in that sin he is as deep as I.If God will be avenged for the deed,O,know you yet He doth it publicly.Take not the quarrel from His pow'rful arm;He needs no indirect or lawless course To cut off those that have offended Him.FIRST MURDERER.Who made thee then a bloody minister When gallant-springing brave Plantagenet,That princely novice,was struck dead by thee?CLARENCE.My brother's love,the devil,and my rage.FIRST MURDERER.Thy brother's love,our duty,and thy faults,Provoke us hither now to slaughter thee.CLARENCE.If you do love my brother,hate not me;I am his brother,and I love him well.If you are hir'd for meed,go back again,And I will send you to my brother Gloucester,Who shall reward you better for my life Than Edward will for tidings of my death.SECOND MURDERER.You are deceiv'd:your brother Gloucester hates you.CLARENCE.O,no,he loves me,and he holds me dear.
Go you to him from me.FIRST MURDERER.Ay,so we will.CLARENCE.Tell him when that our princely father York Bless'd his three sons with his victorious arm And charg'd us from his soul to love each other,He little thought of this divided friendship.Bid Gloucester think of this,and he will weep.FIRST MURDERER.Ay,millstones;as he lesson'd us to weep.CLARENCE.O,do not slander him,for he is kind.FIRST MURDERER.Right,as snow in harvest.Come,you deceive yourself:'Tis he that sends us to destroy you here.CLARENCE.It cannot be;for he bewept my fortune And hugg'd me in his arms,and swore with sobs That he would labour my delivery.FIRST MURDERER.Why,so he doth,when he delivers you From this earth's thraldom to the joys of heaven.SECOND
MURDERER.Make peace with God,for you must die,my lord.CLARENCE.Have you that holy feeling in your souls To counsel me to make my peace with God,And are you yet to your own souls so blind That you will war with God by murd'ring me?O,sirs,consider:they that set you on To do this deed will hate you for the deed.SECOND MURDERER.What shall we do?CLARENCE.Relent,and save your souls.FIRST MURDERER.Relent!No,'tis cowardly and womanish.CLARENCE.Not to relent is beastly,savage,devilish.Which of you,if you were a prince's son,Being pent from liberty as I am now,If two such murderers as yourselves came to you,Would not entreat for life?My friend,I spy some pity in thy looks;O,if thine eye be not a flatterer,Come thou on my side and entreat for me-As you would beg were you in my distress.A begging prince what beggar pities not?SECOND MURDERER.Look behind you,my lord.FIRST MURDERER.[Stabbing him]Take that,and that.If all this will not do,I'll drown you in the malmsey-butt within.Exit with the body SECOND MURDERER.A bloody deed,and desperately dispatch'd!How fain,like Pilate,would I wash my hands Of this most grievous murder!
Re-enter FIRST MURDERER
FIRST MURDERER-How now,what mean'st thou that thou help'st me not?By heavens,the Duke shall know how slack you have been!SECOND MURDERER.I would he knew that I had sav'd his brother!Take thou the fee,and tell him what I say;For I repent me that the Duke is slain.Exit FIRST MURDERER.So do not I.Go,coward as thou art.Well,I'll go hide the body in some hole,Till that the Duke give order for his burial;And when I have my meed,I will away;For this will out,and then I must not stay.Exit
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