Page:Henry VI Part 3 (1923) Yale.djvu/72

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Or hew my way out with a bloody axe.

Why, I can smile, and murther whiles I smile,

And cry, 'Content,' to that which grieves my heart,

And wet my cheeks with artificial tears,

And frame my face to all occasions.

I'll drown more sailors than the mermaid shall;

I'll slay more gazers than the basilisk;

I'll play the orator as well as Nestor,

Deceive more slily than Ulysses could,

And, like a Sinon, take another Troy.

I can add colours to the chameleon,

Change shapes with Proteus for advantages,

And set the murtherous Machiavel to school.

Can I do this, and cannot get a crown?

Tut! were it farther off, I'll pluck it down.

Lew. Fair Queen of England, worthy Margaret,

Sit down with us: it ill befits thy state

And birth, that thou shouldst stand while Lewis doth sit.

Mar. No, mighty King of France: now Margaret

Must strike her sail, and learn a while to serve

Where kings command. I was, I must confess,

 187 basilisk: fabulous reptile whose sight was death

191 add to: assume more colors than

192 for advantages: as my purpose requires

193 Give Machiavelli himself lessons in murder; cf. n.

 2 state: dignity 